


Fractured Avatar Book 1: Water

by Lex_Perseph0ne, RainoftheForest



Series: Fractured Avatar [1]
Category: Avatar: The Last Airbender
Genre: AU MINE and Lex_Perseph0ne, Alternate Universe - Canon Divergence, Bato adopts Zuko into Tribe, Gaang gets new outfits and weapons (yes including Aang), Gen, Iroh is unaware, No romance at all, Non-Honor Obsessed Zuko, Past Avatar Relations, Sokka can Bend, Zhao is still an asshole, familial ties
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2018-11-16
Updated: 2019-03-20
Packaged: 2019-08-24 08:17:57
Rating: Mature
Warnings: Graphic Depictions Of Violence
Chapters: 7
Words: 82,391
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/16636271
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Lex_Perseph0ne/pseuds/Lex_Perseph0ne, https://archiveofourown.org/users/RainoftheForest/pseuds/RainoftheForest
Summary: When Aang froze himself in the iceberg, the Avatar Spirit fractured into five pieces: Water, Earth, Fire, Air, and Spirit. The Air Piece remained with Aang while the other four pieces floated around the world for years searching for the right host. Fire finds a home in it's Nation's prince, Water and Spirit find refuge in the Southern Tribe, and Earth nestles in a human Badgermole.





	1. Icebergs and Meetings

**Author's Note:**

> So a couple of weeks ago, I was reading A:TLA fanfiction when an idea just HIT me. I ended up pitching it to my college dorm roommate, and what started out as a few minute telling, turned into a four hour discussion. With their help, I was able to plan out the entirety of my AUs timeline, and the only thing I need to do is write each 'episode' up. Now, I couldn't have done this without their help along the way as a couple of the ideas in this AU came from them. Since I know how each episode will go, vaguely, writing it out will be much simpler. I will also be double posting this story on Fanfiction.net. My penname there is also Rain of the Forest.
> 
> Disclaimer: I do not own canon Avatar: The Last Airbender, but this AU of it is mine. ALL MINE. With shared ownership with Lex_Perseph0ne.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> So a couple of weeks ago, I was reading A:TLA fanfiction when an idea just HIT me. I ended up pitching it to my college dorm roommate, and what started out as a few minute telling, turned into a four hour discussion. With their help, I was able to plan out the entirety of my AUs timeline, and the only thing I need to do is write each 'episode' up. Now, I couldn't have done this without their help along the way as a couple of the ideas in this AU came from them. Since I know how each episode will go, vaguely, writing it out will be much simpler. I will also be double posting this story on Fanfiction.net. My penname there is also Rain of the Forest.
> 
> Disclaimer: I do not own canon Avatar: The Last Airbender, but this AU of it is mine. ALL MINE. With shared ownership with Lex_Perseph0ne.

* * *

 

Water.

Earth.

Fire.

Air.

My grandmother used to tell me stories about the old days. A time of peace.

When the Avatar kept balance between the Water Tribes, Earth Kingdom, Fire Nation, and Air Nomads.

But that all changed when the Fire Nation attacked.

Only the Avatar mastered all four elements.

Only he could stop the ruthless firebenders.

But when the world needed him most, he vanished.

A hundred years have passed and the Fire Nation is nearing victory in the war.

Two years ago, my father and the men of my tribe journeyed to the Earth Kingdom to help fight against the Fire Nation.

Leaving me and my brother to look after our tribe.

Some people believe that the Avatar was never reborn into the Air Nomads. And that the cycle is broken, but I haven't lost hope.

I still believe that somehow, the Avatar will return to save the world.

xXx

_White and blue. That is all that can be seen for miles around, but that's not unexpected when you live around the South Pole. All this cold weather does make for difficult living though. Keeping warm, making tents, gathering food-_

“It's not getting away from me this time.”

_-Which is how we come to meet two of the main characters of this story. Let's see, shall we?_

“Watch and learn, Katara. _This_ is how you catch a fish.” a young man with brown skin, brown hair and a blue and white parka states as he holds a spear in his left hand, poised above the water next to his canoe where a fish is swimming along.

Behind him in the canoe is his sister, Katara, a girl with similar skin and hair color along with blue eyes to match the boy in front of her. She, too, is wearing a blue and white furred parka like the older boy. She gives a look of indifference to the boy's words towards her and turns her head towards the water. Her eyes widen in surprise as she spots a fish swim by in the water. Shooting a quick glance over towards her brother, she yanks off the glove from her left hand. Holding her arm out with a look of concentration on her face, she takes a deep breath before she waves her hand up and down. Suddenly, a bubble of water with the fish trapped inside rises out of the ocean waters and begins to float through the air as Katara begins to wave both of her arms around now to keep the bubble moving. The fish, now noticing it's prison, tries to swim out, but Katara keeps the bubble moving with it to keep it inside.

“Sokka! Sokka, look at this!” Katara says, happily surprised at her success.

“Shh! What are you trying to do, scare all the fish for the next two icebergs?” Sokka cries in a whisper, not even turning around to look at his sister. His face takes on a look of hunger as his mouth starts to drool. “Mmm, I can just smell it, all cooked and ready to be eaten.”

Behind him, his sister is making wide circular movements with her arms to keep the fish in the water. She begins moving the bubble over her brother's head so she can show him. As the bubble raises over him, Sokka rears back his spear to pierce the fish, but ends up piercing the bubble instead. The water, released from Katara's control, rains down on him, soaking his parka.

“Hey! Look what you did!” Katara exclaims indiginantly.

As her brother lets out a gasp of discomfort as the cold water soaks his hair, Katara watches the fish bounce of Sokka's head and back into the icy waters. Sokka turns around and lays the spear down perpendicularly on the canoe's rim as he stares at his sister.

“'Hey', yourself! Why is it that every time you're playing with your freaky magic water, _I_ end up getting completely soaked?!” he clenches his gloves, causing excess water to fall from the soaked items.

“How many times have I told you, Sokka?” Katara answers, annoyance laced in her voice. “It's not _magic_ , or _freaky_ , it's waterbending! And it's part-”

“Yeah, yeah, yeah.” Sokka interjects. “'Part of our culture and an ancient art of our Tribes', blah, blah, blah. You've repeated to me enough of what Gran-Gran has told you. I'm just saying that if _I_ had weird magic powers-” he reaches up and grabs his wolf tail to wringing the water out of it. “-I would at least do my weirdness where no one could get _completely soaked_ by it!”

“You have the gall to call _me_ weird?” Katara asks as she raises an eyebrow, skepticism obvious on her face. “ _I'm_ not the one who makes muscles at myself every time I see my reflection in the water!” she says with an air of smugness.

Smugness which is justified as her brother has his sleeve rolled up and is flexing his arm at himself with a confidant grin on his face. At her words, though, his happy expression disappears as he pulls his sleeve down and begins to turn around to face her.

Before he can say a word, their canoe shudders and the two scrabble to keep their small boat from tipping over. Sokka turns back towards the front to see the cause of their distress. Their boat is caught up in a rapid current which is pulling their small craft towards a jumble of icebergs, which are blocking the end of their narrow passageway. Sokka grabs a paddle in an attempt to steer their boat clear of the floating chunks of ice. He manages to speed up their craft enough to avoid two icebergs that slam together right behind them. He continues to paddle, steering the boat to avoid ice chunks as the approach their little boat.

“Turn right!” Katara cries from where she is holding on in the back of the canoe as her brother steers them through the current. “Left! Turn left!” she yells.

In front of them the ice is floating closer together, and behind them is another chunk coming right up behind their canoe. The three piece of ice completely crush their boat, but not before Sokka grabs his spear in his right hand, and wraps his left around his sister's waist and throws them both onto one of the floes. Katara nearly falls off the other edge, but is stopped by Sokka's arm still around her waist. The two of them sit up, Sokka stabbing his spear into the ice to keep it from falling away into the ice depths. Katara moves from the rim, towards the middle as she turns towards her brother.

“You call that _left_?” she asks with a touch of bitterness.

“Well, if you didn't like my steering, then maybe you should have-” he makes exaggerated movements, mocking her. “- _waterbended_ us to safety.”

Katara gives an annoyed cry as she turns so her back to towards her brother. “So it's _my_ fault our boat got destroyed?” she asks indigintly.

Sokka turns away from her, muttering. “I KNEW I should have left you at home!” his sister turns to look down at him in anger. “Leave it to a girl to ruin everything!” he says with an air of calm.

Katara's anger quickly turns to righteous fury as she points at him in anger. “You are the most sexist-” she raises her hands above her head and throws them behind her, the ice flow rocking as the water followed her gestures “-immature-” her hands come back to her head “-nut-brained-” she swings her arms back down, making a larger wave this time “-argh, I'm embarrassed to even be related to you!” she throws a hand upward, a small stream of water jets up behind her as well.

She swings both of her hands backwards forcefully once again and, in her unconscious waterbending, hurls a wave directly into the towering iceberg behind her with a loud, air-splitting _crack_! A split in the ice arcs up its surface and out its side, leaving a spray of ice where it ends. Sokka, who disinterested and not paying any attention to his sister, glances over to see if her tantrum has evaporated yet and looks away; after a short moment he does a double-take looking closely at the iceberg towering over their small figures, his disinterest morphing into terror.

“Katara...” he says, trying to get her attention.

“Ever since Mom died _I've_ been doing all the work around the village while _you_ are off playing soldier!” she emphasizes her words with a sharp down swing of her left hand, the crack in the iceberg deepening behind her.

“Um, hey Katara?” Sokka tries to point behind her.

Katara then shoves her finger in his face. “I even wash all the dirty laundry! Have you ever bothered to smell your socks? Let me tell you something, _it's not pleasant_!!!” on the last word she unconsciously waterbends once again, causing more cracks to streak across the iceberg's surface.

“Katara!” Sokka screeches, his eyes wide in terror. “You've got to settle down!”

“NO!” she cries. “That is it, Sokka! I'm done helping you! From now on, you're _on your own_!”

Her last movement is her most agitated thus far and it creates a huge wave, when it collides with the iceberg, it sends a number of fissures to snake their way up the icy surface; one of them reaches the top, splitting the iceberg completely in half. Completely petrified, Sokka gasps for air, and seeing his face, Katara finally turns around to look behind her. She gasps as she sees the two halves begin to fall away from each other leaning towards the water. Both halves hit the water, creating a wave larger than any Katara has ever managed and it steams outward towards them and they are thrown down to the ice as it pushes their flow backwards. Sokka pulls Katara close to him with his left arm, using his right to hold onto the spear still lodged in the ice. Once their floe has settled somewhat, Sokka takes the moment to remove his arm and turn towards her.

“Okay, you've officially gone from 'weird' to 'bizarre', Katara!” he states.

“Wait, you mean I did _that_?” she asks in astonishment. “I've never done anything that large before!”

Sokka gives her a sarcastic smirk. “Yep, you sure did.” he pats her on the back. “Congratulations.”

Right after he finishes his statement, the water in front of them begins to bubble, quickly followed by a glow with a bright blue hue. The glow quickly gets bigger and Sokka and Katara quickly scramble back in renewed terror towards the center of their floe, and just in time too. A large, roughly spherical iceberg breaks the surface of the water. Once the massive ball of ice is above the water, they realize that it is the source of the blue glow. The crashing waves generated by the iceberg's surfacing push their floe backwards as the hunk of ice bobs to the side, before coming to rest with its rounded dome top exposed to the sky. Completely mesmerized, Katara strays closer and stares at the huge glowing iceberg. Behind her, Sokka halfheartedly stretches out his hand, as if to hold her back, but he too is entranced. The two siblings can only stare, completely in awe of the strange phenomenon before them.

Katara takes a closer look, noticing a humanistic shape within, above it a large indistinguishable mass. She notices the figure is perched in the lotus position, has glowing marks on its hands and head. Raising an eyebrow at the odd sight, Katara takes a closer look. The figures features are illuminated by the light of it's marks, which reveal it to be a young boy. Suddenly, the boy's eyes shoot open, the same light which illuminates his marks igniting them as well. Both siblings gasp in shock.

“I can't believe it!” Katara cries. “He's alive, we have to help!”

Reaching behind her brother, she pulls his machete out of its sheath on his back and runs towards the large chunk of ice, pulling her hood over her head as she runs.

Sokka cries out as she takes his machete. “Hey! Katara, get back here!” he yanks his spear out of the ice and starts racing after her. “We don't even know what that giant thing is!!”

Katara hops across the floes, Sokka close behind her. Reaching the iceberg first, Katara begins striking the ice with Sokka's machete. On her fifth strike, the machete breaks the surface and a huge gust of wind escapes from inside, throwing her and and her brother backwards. Cracks quickly coat the surface of the dome and, in a massive outward explosion, the entire orb of lice destroys itself. A beam of the bluish light bursts from the core of the iceberg and shoots into the sky.

xXx

Far away, on a small metal military ship, a young scarred man stands on deck, gazing at the light. His hair in a short top knot, a few loose strands flutter in the wind.

“Well, here goes nothing.” he mutters under his breath. He turns around towards a man who is sitting at a small table. “Uncle! Do you realize what this means!?” he asks loudly, carefully managing his voice level.

“I won't get to finish my game?” the old man answers calmly while looking at the card in his hand.

“It means my search,” he turns back towards the light. “is finally about to come to an end.”

The old man sighs uninterested, still looking at his game. The young man turns back towards the old man and gestures towards the light. “That light came from an incredibly powerful source!” the light slowly disappears. “It has to be him!”

“Or it is just the celestial lights.” the old man interjects, still disinterested with an air of skepticism. “We've been through these waters before, Prince Zuko.” he looks at the wooden card in his hand, which holds the three swirled symbol of air. “I do not want you to get too excited over nothing.” he places the tile on another with the three pronged flame of fire.

A man brings a pot of tea to the old man. “Your tea, General Iroh.”

“Thank you.” Iroh thanks the man, turning back to Zuko. “Come, please sit. Have a nice cup of calming Jasmine tea with me, nephew.”

Taking on a face of exaggerated fury, Zuko turns towards his uncle. “I don't _need_ any calming tea! I need to capture the Avatar!” looking up towards the helm, he spits out orders. “Helmsman! Aim our course for that light!”

xXx

Back near the iceberg, the winds have settled and the water calmed. Katara slowly peeks out from where she was clutched in Sokka's arms to see that the giant ice dome is now a hollowed out shell. The two get to their feet and Sokka points his spear at the ice ready to defend, but lowers it in shock as a figure emerges slowly from the crater in the iceberg.

Holding the spear up in defense once more, Sokka pushes Katara behind him. “Stop!”

The figure erects himself and looks down at them, the two siblings looking back in wonder, awe, and fear. Suddenly, the light from the boys hand and head arrows dissipates, revealing that he is but a child. The young boy groans as the light vanishes and he groans from exhaustion and crumples, falling forward down the snowy slope. Gasping, Katara rushes from behind Sokka and catches him before he can hit the ground. She turns him around and sees just how young he really is, as he can't be any younger than herself. Taking in his appearance, she sees his yellow and orange garb and wonders how he is not freezing. He is also completely bald with blue arrow tattoos on his head and hands where the blue glow came from earlier. Katara stares at him in amazement, having never seen anything like him before. Suddenly, Sokka breaks the moment by poking the bald boy with the blunt end of his spear.

“Stop it, Sokka!” Katara brushes the spear away, annoyed.

She leans the boy up against the base of the crater as he gives a light groan. His eyes slowly open, revealing gray eyes. He gives a small gasp when he sees the Southern Water Tribe girl before him, looking up to meet her blue eyes.

Both their worlds erupt into white.

 

_Katara is standing in the middle of a white expanse. She can't see anything for miles. Suddenly color surrounds her and she's in the middle of an expansive city of ice. From the symbol that is everywhere, Katara realizes that it's the Northern Water Tribe, her villages sister tribe. Then a young man catches her eye, as it's like all the other people have blurred and he is the only thing not perfectly clear. She follows him to a separate section of the city and watches him waterbend. She gasps in excitement, she had never seen any actual waterbending before! She watches and tries to memorize the movements he uses, hoping to try them out later when she gets the chance._

“ _Kuruk!”_

 _Katara turns towards the voice, only to see a blurred person running towards the young man._ His name is Kuruk? _She gathers as the young man reacts to the voice. Suddenly everything blurs, including the man._

“ _Wait! No!” Katara cries, trying to keep the image from fading, but she holds no power, and everything fades to black._

 

“-ara! Hey! Why are you staring?!” Katara feels a shaking in her shoulder and realizes that her brother is shaking her shoulder. How long had she been staring at this boy?

 

Sokka is getting really annoyed with this boy! His sister had just looked into the kid's eyes when they started glowing again along with his tattoos. He was in such shock that he couldn't even move. This went on for about a minute or so before he snap out of it. What if this guy was Fire Nation! He grabs her shoulder and starts shaking her.

“Hey! Katara! Hey! Why are you staring?!” he asks in a loud voice.

He is relieved when his sister starts moving, she and the boy groaning softly his tattoos stop glowing, both shaking their heads. Wait-groaning!? What did this person do to his sister!? He opens his mouth to ask such, but is cut off when the boy stops shaking his head and starts talking.

“Hey, I need to ask you something.” he says in a weak, hoarse voice.

Katara stops shaking her head and leans forward, seemingly pushing the odd vision from her mind for now. “What is it?” she asks softly.

Suddenly the boys eyes go wide. “Will you go penguin sledding with me?” his voice is void of its previous condition and is now happy and hopeful.

Confusion spreads across her face as Katara answers awkwardly. “Um... sure, I guess.”

Looking around curiously, the boy rises to his feet in one swift motion, which surprise the other two. Katara sits back on her heels in surprise, while Sokka raises his spear towards him. His sister gives him a look that says 'really?'.

The bald boy rubs his head as he asks takes in his surroundings. “What's going on?” he asks.

“You tell us!” Sokka says aggressively. “How did you get in the ice?” he points at the crater next to them. “And how are you not frozen solid?” he asks, poking the boy in the side with his spear.

The boy lazily brushes the spear away, seemingly not worried about the sharp weapon. “I'm not quite sure...” he replies.

Then a low gruff sound fills the air, coming from inside the crater. The boy turns and quickly climbs the ridge and jumps onto the head of a large, white, furry creature with horns and the same arrow-shaped markings as the boy.

“Appa! Are you okay?!” he asks the large creature. “Hey, wake up buddy.” he looks down at one of it's eyes, which are still closed.

He tries opening an eyelid manually with his hand, only for it to close once he released it. He jumps down and tries to lift the large head, only to start laughing when a large tongue pokes out and licks the boy, lifting him off his feet. The siblings round the corner to see the large beast licking the boy and Sokka's jaw drops.

“Good to see that you're okay!” the boy cries.

The large creature gets up on, what the siblings can see, six legs and stretches itself out.

“What in Tui's name is that thing?” Sokka asks.

“Oh, this is Appa. He's my flying bison!” the boy explains.

Sokka snorts in disbelief. “Right, then this is Katara, my flying sister.” he says sarcastically.

The boy and Katara both shoot him questioning looks, but their attention is directed to Appa as he starts to inhale deeply. Obviously realizing what is going to happen, the boy ducks moments before Appa sneezes and sends a large blast of green snot flying directly into Sokka, who becomes completely covered in it. He squeals in disgust before dropping to his knees and frantically tries to rub it off, his sister watching in amusement.

The boy gives a smile. “Don't worry, it washes out.” the siblings groan in disgusts when Sokka pulls a hand away from his face, a trail of the snot dripping down his cheek. “So, do you two live around here?” he asks the two.

He jumps back in surprise when a spear is shoved in his face. “Don't answer that!” Sokka declares, getting to his feet. “Did you see that bright beam of light? He was probably trying to signal the Fire Navy!”

Katara pushes his spear and turns to address him. “Oh yeah, I'm sure he's a spy for the Fire Navy, Sokka. You can just tell by that _evil_ look in his eyes.” the boy quickly gives the two an earnest grin. “The paranoid and overly cautious one is my older brother, Sokka. You never told us your name.”

Aang smiles. “I'm A-ah-ah ACHOO!” the boy sneezes, only he shoots several feet into the air with a large blast of air. He slides back onto the ground, stopping right in front of the siblings. “I'm Aang!” he states, sniffling a bit.

“You...” Sokka looks at him in disbelief. “You just sneezed! And flew fifteen feet into the air!” he exclaimed while pointing at the sky.

“Really, it felt more like thirty.” the newly named Aang stated.

Katara gasps in realization. “You... You're an airbender!”

“Sure am!” Aang nods.

Sokka groans. “Giant beams of light, flying bison, airbenders..” he turns to walk away. “I think I'm coming down with midnight sun madness. I'm going back home where everything makes sense.” he stops as he remembers that they're stuck in the middle of nowhere.

“Well...” Aang begins, seeming to realize that they don't have a way home. “If you two need a ride home, Appa and I would be glad to give you a lift.” he gives a twirl and airbends himself onto Appa's head and grabs the reins.

Katara smiles. “We'd love a ride! Thank you!” she runs over to the side of the bison.

Sokka turns and points accusingly at the bison. “Oh no! I'm not getting on that large fluffy snot monster!”

Katara looks down at him as Aang helps her into the saddle. “Oh what? Are you hoping some _other_ monster will come around and give you a lift home? You know, some time _before_ you freeze to death?” she asks.

Sokka opens his mouth to retaliate, only to realize that he's got nothing and sighs before bowing his head in defeat. He climbs into the saddle and leans against the pack in the back in a sulk while Katara holds a look of excitement. Aang returns to Appa's head and grabs the reins again before turning to look back at his passengers.

“Okay! First time fliers, hold on tight!!” he snaps the reins down. “Appa, yip-yip!”

The sky bison lifts his tail and slaps it up and down and takes a huge jump into the air, only to soar through the air for a few moments before crashing down into the icy waters with a splash. Kataras smile disappears as she climbs to the front of the saddle while Aang tries to get Appa flying again.

“Come on, buddy! You can do it! Yip-yip!” his bison gives a groan in response.

“Wow..” Sokka says sarcastically. “That was truly awe inspiring.”

Aang gives a small glare towards the other male. “Appa's just tired. A little rest and he'll be soaring through the skies in no time. You'll see.” he looks at Katara who smiles, and he returns the gesture. When she turns to crawl back to Sokka, she realizes he's still smiling at her.

“Why are you smiling at me like that?” she asks, feeling uncomfortable.

“Oh. I was smiling?” he asks in confusion, causing Katara to smile again.

Sokka throws back his head and groans and makes a disgusted noise. Katara turns towards him with an angry face.

“Could you at least be quiet if you're going to be rude? He's giving us a ride back to the village, the least you could do is be courteous!” she tells him.

Sokka raises his head to stare at his sister. “I'm only coming to keep an eye on you! You are too trusting, Katara! We don't know why he's here, where he came from, or how he came to be here!” he states. “Not to mention he did something to you when you caught him!”

“No, he didn't!” Katara cries.  
“No, I didn't!” Aang cries.

“Then why did you sound like you were in pain after staring at him for, like, over a minute?!” Sokka asks.

Katara grits her teeth. “He didn't hurt me, Sokka!” she looks to the side. “I just saw... something when I looked into his eyes.”

“'Something'?” Sokka questions.

“Like a vision. I saw our sister tribe, Sokka. I got to see someone _waterbending_!!” she declares with happiness. “I'm going to try out the moves he did when I get back to the village!”

“What! Katara, that's dangerous!” Sokka cries.

“You're a waterbender?” Aang asks in amazement.

“Well, not yet. I don't have a teacher, so everything I can do is based on what I make up myself.” Katara explains.

“Wait, wait, wait! How do you know that what you saw wasn't some sort of hallucination!?” Sokka asks, grabbing Katara and pulling her next to him. “It could have been some sort of drug for a trap by the Fire Nation!”

Katara yanks her arm out of his grip. “Sokka! It wasn't a hallucination! I really saw our sister tribe! And besides!” she gestures to Aang. “does he _honestly_ look like he works for the Fire Nation? Look at him and tell me that he honestly looks like he's Fire Nation.”

Sokka grumbles and turns to look at the airbender. Looking at his clothes first, he has to admit that something so bright would not be part of the Fire Nation's clothing regulations, nor would tattoos. He also admits that though he has pale skin, no fire citizen has pale gray eyes.

As his blue eyes connect with those gray eyes, his world explodes into white.

 

_Sokka blinks his eyes as he takes in the white expanse before him. Just as he is about to make a sarcastic remark, the world spins into existence. He finds himself surrounded by light browns, greens, and grays and realizes that the greens and browns were trees, and the grays are stone bricks, things his father talked about when he and his men went to the mainland once when he and Katara were little. He looks around and sees a man who has his hair up similar to his father and striking blue eyes, labeling him as Water Tribe, but instead of the classic blue, he's dressed in yellow and orange clothing, similar to what Aang was wearing. He's in a standing position with his hands held together, a peaceful, calm expression on his face. Suddenly he lunges forward with both hands out, a huge gust of wind migrating from his palms._

“ _Good job, Kuruk.” a voice says from behind Sokka._

 _He quickly turns around to see... a person. Their outline is the only thing visible about him, his voice distinguishing him as male, but everything about him remains blurred. He turns back towards the other man_ Did he call him Kuruk? _and he sees that he can still see him perfectly fine. The man straightens and bows._

“ _Thanks.” he nods at the indistinguishable figure._

“ _Your airbending has gotten better.” the blurred man states._

“ _Yeah, I think I'm about ready to move on to the spiritual side of all of this.” Kuruk states._

“ _Very well, have fun with that, my friend.” the man gives him a bow._

_Suddenly everything, even Kuruk, goes blurry and Sokka's vision goes black._

 

“Sokka! Can you hear me?”

 

I didn't think this would happen again. _Aang though as he looks at the white everything around him. This is the second time this has happened to him, the first time being when he looked into Katara's eyes earlier. He had seen a vision of Avatar Yangchen, back when she had started her airbending training, he and the other Air Nomads had been taught about her when they were young, just as they had been taught about every airbending Avatar they had recorded in their history scrolls. He jumps slightly as a scenery slowly appears around him, showing an older Avatar Yangchen dressed in a parka, similar to the ones his new friends were wearing, standing on a small chunk of ice in the middle of the ocean. She lashes out her hand, and a wave of water echos out from below her hand outwards_

I get it, this is Avatar Yangchen during her waterbending training... _he thought with a smile as the air Avatar continued to do elaborate waterbending moves._ Maybe I could memorize some of these to show Katara later...

_Suddenly all the scenery begins to fade, just like the last time with Katara, and the last thing Aang sees before his vision fades is Avatar Yangchen as she ends her sequence._

 

Katara was completely irritated with Sokka, Aang was obviously not a Fire Nation spy! What reason would they have to send a spy down here to the South Pole? They already sent a raid to exterminate her tribes only glimpse of hope seen in years, her waterbending. And the end result was her dead mother who protected her to keep her gift a secret. She just wants Sokka to look, _really_ look, at Aang and honestly tell her he still thinks he's a spy. She watches as he looks over Aang's clothes first, probably trying to see if there's any hidden weapons or something. Then when he makes eye contact with Aang she freezes in shock when both their eyes start glowing a white glow, Aang's tattoos glowing much they had before when he emerged from the iceberg. She is frozen in shock that she can't even move, then about a minute later she bolts into action and grabs her brother's shoulder.

“Sokka! Can you hear me?” she cries.

She can't withhold a sound of relief when her brother reacts, his eyes stop glowing, a quick glance over to Aang shows that his eyes and tattoo have also ceased their glowing as well. Her brother slumps against her.

“Okay, so he's not a Fire Nation spy.” he grumbles. “I still don't trust him.”

Katara can only make a 'are you kidding me' sound as they continue floating through the ocean.

xXx

Back on the metal ship, we see Prince Zuko standing at the helm, looking into the distance. His uncle comes up behind him.

“I'm going to bed, nephew.” he says with a yawn and stretches. “Yes, a man needs his rest.” he withholds a groan when he sees that his veiled suggestions are not being heeded. “Prince Zuko, you need to sleep. Even if your lead is right, and the Avatar _is_ alive, you won't find him. Your father, grandfather, and great-grandfather all searched and failed.”

“Because their _honor_ did not ride on them finding the Avatar. Mine DOES. That coward's one hundred years of hiding is finally over.”

Iroh only shakes his head and heads back inside to head to bed. Zuko waits for a few moments, making sure his uncle will not make a return appearance before letting out a relived sigh. Resting his hands on the railing, he looks on into the horizon.

“I _will_ find you, and I _will_ get some answers.”

xXx

Appa is still swimming through the water, the three humans having gone silent since the odd eye glowing light show, not knowing what to say. Katara decides to try to break the air and crawls to the front. She leans on the front of the saddle and rests her head on her arms.

“Hey.” she says and mentally slaps herself.

“Hey. What are ya thinking about?” Aang replies.

“I guess I was just wondering..” she begins. “your being an airbender and all that, if you had any clue who the Avatar was and what happened to them?”

Aang sits up and gives her a weak smile. “Oh, no. I didn't know him. I mean, I knew people that knew him, but I've never met him before myself. Sorry.”

“Okay. I was just curious.” she relents and smiles at Aang. “Good night.”

Aang gives a weak laugh. “Sleep tight.” he settles down with an uncomfortable look on his face before closing his eyes.

_Aang is sleeping on Appa's saddle while clouds build around and ahead of him. Lightning splits the sky and the rumble of the following thunder awakens him. He shoots up and looks around. It is raining and Aang is sitting on Appa's head again, holding the reigns and screaming at the top of his lungs in terror while they go down. Appa and Aang splash into the waters of the ocean. Appa resurfaces again, growls, but is quickly subdued anew by another wave. Both Aang and Appa sink unconscious into the water. As Aang releases the reigns and drifts off, his eyes and tattoos suddenly start to glow brightly. He slams his fists together, creating a bluish-white sphere that encases Appa and himself. As the air sphere slowly solidifies into an icy globe, a voice permeates the dream._

“Aang! Aang! Wake up!” Aang shoots up, throwing the covers off his body as he looks up to see Katara perching next to him who gets up seeing that he is awake. “Everything's okay, we're in the village now. Now get up! Everyone is waiting to meet you!”

Aang happily jumps out of bed and starts to get dressed, Katara staring in wonder as she sees that his tattoos continue down his back and up to his head. He grabs his staff that was settled against one of the walls. Once he's ready Katara grabs his arm and pulls him from the tent, where Sokka is sitting right outside the flap. He gets up as they pass and follows them towards where a small congregation of villagers have gathered.

“Aang, this is the entirety of the adults of our village. Entire village, Aang.” Aang gives a respectful bow to the villagers, who react in fear, putting Aang on edge.

“Um, Katara? Why are they all looking at me like that?” he suddenly looks over his clothes. “Did Appa sneeze on me or something?”

An elderly woman steps forward from the line of villagers. “Well, no one has seen any airbenders for one-hundred years. We all thought they were extinct, until my granddaughter and grandson found you, young airbender.”

Aang looks at her in disbelief. “Extinct? Are you serious?”

“Aang, this is my grandmother.” Katara introduces.

The old woman looks straight at Aang. “Call me Gran-Gran.” she says in a deadpan tone.

Sokka abruptly yanks Aang's staff from his hand and examines it. “What is this? Some kind of weapon? You can't stab anything with this.”

Aang laughs and takes the staff back. “It's not for stabbing, it's for airbending!” he opens his staff, turning it into a glider, which startles Sokka.

“Magic trick!” a child calls. “Again! Again!”

“Not magic, airbending!” Aang tells the kids. “It lets me manipulate the air currents around my glider and fly!”

Sokka crosses his arms and tells him in a mocking voice. “Last time anyone checked, _humans can't fly_ , airhead!”

Aang gets a vicious smirk on his face as he pulls his glider behind him. “Well, tell someone to check again!”

He leaps into the air, leaving Sokka and Katara to cover their faces from the sudden wind. The villages stares in awe as Aang soars through the sky and makes loops and does other cool tricks. The children make noises of admiration as he glides around. He does a few more loops before he flies over Katara who is smiling broadly. Wanting to impress her more, he begins to do a more elaborate move, but ends up slamming into a snow watchtower. Katara gasps and starts making her way over to help him.

“My watchtower...” Sokka cries in shock.

Aang is partially covered in snow at the base of the collapsed watchtower when Katara and a few of the children run towards him.

“That was incredible!” Katara states as she holds out her hand.

As she pulls him out, Sokka kneels by the base of the tower, hoping to save it from total collapse. As Aang retracts his glider back into a staff, a large clump of snow falls on top of Sokka. Grumbling as he stands up he looks towards the two of them.

“Great, you're an airbender, Katara's a waterbender, together you can mess up everything all day long!” then he stalks off to go do chores.

Kanna stalks forward and takes Katara by the arm. “Come on, Katara. You have chores.” As the both walk away, Katara turns towards her gran in excitement.

“See, Gran-Gran! I told you he was a real airbender! I finally have someone who can teach me how to bend!” she and Sokka had decided to omit any details about their odd visions and glowing eyes to anyone.

“My dear, try not to put all of your hope into this boy.” Kanna tells her granddaughter.

“But he's special, Gran-Gran! I can feel it!” she clenches her fists as her eyes fill with hope. “I can sense he's fill with much wisdom!”

She then looks over at the airbender as he sticks his tongue to his staff.

xXx

On the metal deck of his ship, Zuko is going up against two soldiers dressed in the full uniform, compared to him who instead prefers to only wear the grey under cloth of the armor. It makes his uncle uncomfortable whenever he refuses to wear the full armor, so he only wears the full armor when he leaves the ship. Off to the side, his uncle sits down in a small chair watching his training.

“Again.” he calls out.

Zuko spreads his arms in the direction of the two firebenders, showering them both with flames. Both soldiers block his attack with ease. Zuko shifts his weight to duck under a return fire from the bender to his left. The firebender to his right jumps forward to throw a blast at his feet. Zuko propels himself out of the way. He twists around in mid-air and directs another fire blast with his hand to the firebender who retaliated first and another with his foot towards the other that aimed for his feet. Both soldiers jump out of the way of his flames. The prince lands and extends his fists so one is facing both adversaries, ready for any attack from either opponent.

Iroh lets out a sigh as he stands to his feet, stepping forward. “No!” his nephew lowers his arms and turns to him. “The power of firebending comes from the _breathe_ , not the muscle! The breathe becomes the energy within the body and extends past your limbs and becomes _fire_.” he says with a demonstration of fire towards Zuko that evaporates before it can hit the young man. “Get it right this time.” he orders as he sits back down.

Putting on an exaggerated look of fury, Zuko walks towards his uncle. “Enough! I have been going over this sequence all day! Teach me the next set! I am _more_ than ready to handle it!” he demands.

“No, you are impatient. You have yet to master the basics, Prince Zuko.” he yells out his order. “Drill it again!”

 **Oh uncle, if only I could show you just _how much_ I've mastered. ** Zuko thinks as he clenches his teeth and turns around abruptly, sending a powerful fire kick towards one of the soldiers, he tries to block but is unable to and is throw back off his feet. Zuko turns back towards his uncle, speaking in a carefully controlled voice.

“The Sages tell us that the Avatar is the last airbender, and since there haven't been any signs of them being reborn into any of the Water Tribes, or Earth Kingdom, we must assume he is still alive. Which makes him over a hundred years old. He has had a century to master the elements! I'll need more than basic firebending in order to defeat him, uncle. You _will_ teach me the advanced set!” he demands, carefully regulating his voice to sound overly demanding to his uncle.

His uncle takes on a look which tells Zuko that he concedes. “Very well.” he quickly picks something up from the ground beside him. “But first, please allow me to finish my roast duck!” he begins to stuff his face full of the hot food.

Zuko gives him a look of dismay, while inside he is relieved he didn't give away his game once more, having to do this for the past three years. Despite being unaware of his uncle's true leanings, it breaks his heart when he has to lie to the old man.

xXx

Back in the Southern Tribe, Sokka is pacing in front of several young male children with a stern expression on his face.

“Now men! It's important that you show no fear when facing a firebender! Here in the Water Tribe, we fight to the last man standing! If we don't have courage, how can we dare call ourselves men?”

A little boy raises his hand. “I gotta go potty!”

“Hey! Until your fathers return from the war, the rest of the village is counting on you to defend the people of our tribe, and that means no potty breaks.” Sokka exclaims, making wild gestures with his arms.

“But I gotta go real bad!” the boy cries.

Sokka gives a sigh and calls. “Alright, who else has to go?” he immediately facepalms in frustration when every child raises their hand.

As the children run past to go to the bathroom, Katara comes up to her brother with a worried look on her face. “Have you seen Aang? Gran-Gran said he disappeared over an hour ago?”

Sokka just points behind her and she turns to see Aang emerging from the bathroom pulling up his pants. He giggles to the children. “Wow! Everything freezes in there, doesn't it?”

Sokka growls. “Katara! Get him out of here! He is distracting my warriors!” he turns as he hears the sound of laughter. The children are now playing on Appa, using his tail as a slide. Sokka runs over in anger as another child flew down the furry slide. “Stop it! Stop it right now!” the children and Aang stop what they're doing to look at him. “We don't have time to play around with _the War_ going on!”

Aang looks at him in confusion. “What war? What are you talking about?”

Sokka and Katara share a glance before Sokka looks back at him. “You're kidding, right?” he asks.

Aang looks at Sokka questioningly before his attention is diverted to behind him and his expression morphs to excitement as he cries. “Penguin!!!” and shoots off like a tiger-seal into water.

The siblings look after him before sharing another glance. “He's kidding, right?” Sokka asks.

Katara goes after him, knowing that with his penguin obsession he'll be where they all lay about when they're not feeding. She hears him calling out to the penguins, trying to get one to let him ride them. She giggles as he is dragged through the snow, trying to get on a penguin. He notices her and gives her a smile and a laugh.

“Heh, I have a way with animals.” he tells her.

She laughs. “How about this? I'll help you catch a penguin, if you teach me waterbending.”

Aang grins at her. “It's a deal!” then his expression morphs into something solemn. “Only one problem, I'm an airbender, not a waterbender. Isn't there someone else in your tribe who can teach you?” he asks.

“No, you're looking at the only waterbender in the entire South Pole.” she tells him, shaking her head.

Aang takes on a thinking look. “This isn't right, every bender needs a master to learn from. Hey, what about the North Pole, your sister tribe you called it, right? Maybe a bender there can teach you!”

“Maybe..” she says. “But we haven't had contact with our sister tribe in many decades. It's not as simple as 'over three glaciers, and passed four ice floes'. It's on the other side of the world!”

“But you seem to forget!” Aang says. “I have a sky bison! Appa and I can just give you a ride! Katara, we're going to find you a master!” he states happily!

Katara looks at him unsure. “I don't know. I've never left the pole before.”  
“Well, while you think on it, can you teach me how to catch one of these guys?” he asks gesturing to the creatures around him.

Katara giggles and reaches into her pocket. “Alright, listen carefully young pupil. Catching of a penguin is a sacred art among our tribe.” she states playfully. “Observe.” she tosses a fish at him.

He catches the fish, confusion evident on his face, before he grins as he is crowded by the penguins as they try to get the fish.

The two both get on a penguin and go to the top of the nearest hill and get on their penguin and start sledding down. Laughter permeates the air as the two sled down. They slide side by side as they both giggle and laugh.

“I haven't done this since I was a child!!” Katara cries.

“You still are one!” Aang cries.

The two slide through a tunnel and over small hills, Katara winding up in the lead. Aang uses his airbending to get ahead of her. As the two come to the bottom of the slope, they come to a large plain, with a large metal ship raised up in the ice. Aang looks over at it curiously, while Katara looks on in trepidation.

“Hey, what is that?” he asks as the two get up and let their penguins walk away.

“A Fire Navy ship. A _very bad memory_ for my people.” she tries to stop Aang as he starts to approach the ship. “Hey, wait! We're not suppose to go near it. It could be booby-trapped! No one has been on that ship since it was placed there!”

Aang looked back at her. “Well, first thing about being a bender, you have to let go of your fear.”

Katara ponders the reply for a moment before walking with Aang towards the ship, fear still evident on her face. The airbender helps her into the ship as they come to a hole in the hull. The two walk around seeing empty rooms until they come up to a room filled with weapons.

“This ship has haunted my people for decades, around the time my Gran-Gran was a little girl. It was part of the Fire Nation's first attacks.”

Aang held up his hands. “Hold it! I think you're confused. I have friends all over the world, even in the Fire Nation!” he picks up a Guan Dao to inspect it. “I never saw anything that looked like it was leading up to a war.”

“Aang..” Katara began. “How long do you think you were in that iceberg for?”

He gives a light shrug. “I don't know, I figured a few days at least.”

Katara shook her head. “I think it might be more like a _hundred years_!!”

Aang looks at her like she's crazy for the first time since he met her. “What! That's not possible. Do I _look_ like an hundred and twelve year old guy to you?!”

Katara presses on. “No, think about it. The War is a century old. You have no idea about it because.. somehow, you were in that iceberg that whole time. It's the only way to explain it.”

Aang leans against the wall in comprehension. “A hundred years...” he says with a sadden tone. “I can't believe it.”

Katara tries to cheer him up. “Come on, Aang! Think on the bright side!”

Aang looks up smiling. “I did get to meet you, if that's what you mean.”

She pulls him to his feet and the two leave the room to find the exit. As they enter a new room Aang's foot pulls on a wire, and suddenly metal bars slide down over the entrance, trapping them inside.

“What the?” Aang asks.

The machines in the room suddenly flare to life and overhead, a signal flare is shot into the sky.

“What was that you said about booby-traps?” Aang asks Katara. He then notices a hole in the roof and Aang takes Katara into his arms. “Hold on!” he says before he jumps through the hole and down the ship back to the snowy ground.

xXx

Back with Prince Zuko, who is peering through a telescope, he follows their movements as they jump down the ship. His telescope isn't strong enough to see the details of their figures, but he figures the one in yellow and orange garb has to be the airbender. “Quite agile for an old man.” he turns towards a soldier behind him. “Wake my uncle. Tell him, I found my target.” he follows the two figures direction and spots a village a few miles ahead. “As well as his hiding spot.”

He focuses back on the two figures and watches them as his ship heads for the village. “Hopefully you can give me the answers I need.” he says under his breath.

 

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> How did you like it?  
>  Comments and Flames welcomed!  
>  Comments will be loved and adored!  
>  Flames will be read but ignored.
> 
> Uploaded (to Ao3): 11/15/2018  
>  Uploaded (to Fanfiction.net): 11/4/2018


	2. The Avatar Returns

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I am also double posting this on Fanfiction.net under Rain of the Forest.
> 
> Disclaimer: I do not own canon Avatar: The Last Airbender, but this AU of it is my creation, this AU belongs to no one by Lex_Perseph0ne and myself. If I see anyone trying to claim otherwise, I will come after you, and I will make you wish you had never seen Avatar: The Last Airbender.

* * *

 

As the flare soars lazily through the sky, Aang and Katara are walking back towards the village. All the villagers have gathered in the snow,many looking up at the flare with fear, others looking at the airbender with fury. At the sight of the two young teens, the young children cheer in joy.

“Aang's back!” they cry as they run up to meet him.

Aang laughs as the kids crowd around him, not noticing the stern looks and offended expressions. As the kids ask him questions, Katara notices her brother who breaks from the line of villagers and starts making their way towards them.

“I knew it!” he cries, pointing an accusing finger at the airbender. “You used that flare to send a signal to the Fire Navy! You've lead them straight to us!”

Katara stands in front of Aang. “Aang didn't DO anything, Sokka! It was just an accident, that's all! Really!” she protested.

Aang rubs his head koala-sheepishly. “Yeah, you see we were on the Fire Nation ship and there was a booby-trap and we kinda... booby-ed right into it.”

Kanna steps forward, a worried expression on her face. “Katara, you should never have gone on that ship! Now we may all be in _danger_!”

Aang steps forward at gives a sorrowful look towards the elderly woman. “Don't blame Katara, blame me. I'm the one who dragged her onto that ship.”

Sokka 'aha's', glad to finally have an excuse to get rid of the younger teen. “Haha! The traitor confesses! Warriors, back away from the enemy. This foreigner is banished from our village.”

Katara clenches her fists as the children sadly walk away from Aang. “Sokka, you're making a terrible mistake!”

Sokka shakes his head, not forgiving in his anger. “No, what I'm doing is keeping the promise I made to dad. I'm protecting you from threats like him!” he says as he points at Aang.

Katara does not let up in her anger. “Aang is not our enemy here!” she smooths her voice out. “Don't you see, he's brought something to the tribe we haven't had in a long time. Fun.”

“Fun? We can't fight firebenders with _fun_ , Katara!” Sokka replies.

“You should give it a try!” Aang interjects.

Sokka looks at Aang and points outward beyond the village walls. “Get out of our village, now!”

Katara turns towards her only remaining hope. “Grandmother, _please_! Don't let him do this! It's not right!”

“Katara, you knew full well that going on that ship was forbidden. Your brother is right. I think it is best for all of us if the airbender leaves.”

Completely outraged, Katara grabs Aang's sleeve and starts pulling him towards Appa. “Fine! Then I'm banished as well. Come on, Aang!”

“And where are YOU going?” her brother demands.

“To find a waterbending teacher. Aang is taking me to the North Pole!” she bites back angrily.

“I am?” Aang's face goes from confused to elated. “Great!”

“Katara!” Sokka cries out. “Are you really going to choose this newcomer over us? Your own family?” he asks her.

She pauses in her march towards Appa and looks at the ground sorrowfully. Aang notices and approaches her with a smile.

“Hey, I don't want to be the reason you leave your family on bad terms.” he tells her.

“So, you're leaving the South Pole?” she asks him. “Is this goodbye?”

“Thanks for going penguin sledding with me.” he tells her as he gets on Appa.

Katara only looks up at him with tears in her eyes. “Where will you go?” she asks softly.

Aang rubs the back of his head. “Well, I guess I could go back home to the Southern Temple and look for other airbenders.” his eyes widen as he realizes something. “Oh boy. I haven't cleaned my room in a hundred years... That's not gonna be fun...” he looks towards the villagers who have gathered a couple yards away. “It was nice to meet all of you. Thank you for welcoming me in the beginning.”

Sokka crosses his arms from where he's standing with the rest of the tribe women and children. “Well, let's see that bison of your fly _now_ , sky boy.” he states sarcastically.

Aang looks down at his friend and snaps the reins. “Come on boy, let's show him. Yip-yip!”

Appa only gives a growl and rises from where he's sitting and starts walking. Aang sighs and rubs the top of his furry friend's head. Sokka looks on mockingly.

“Yeah, that's what I thought.” he states.

Suddenly, a small tribal girl breaks from the crowd and runs over crying to stand next to Katara as she looks up at Aang, who had Appa pause to see what she wanted.

“Please, Aang. Don't leave us. I had fun playing with you. I don't want to miss you!” she begs the airbender, whose heart breaks as he hears the girl's plea.

“I had fun playing with you guys too.” he tells her, his voice downtrodden with sadness. “I'm gonna miss you too.” with one last look at Katara, he flicked the reins again. “Come on, buddy. Let's get going.”

As the airbender and his bison plod away from the small Water Tribe village, the little girl gives a small sigh of sadness and turns back towards the village, her shoulders hanging heavy. Gran-Gran walks up towards her, stopping a few feet behind her granddaughter.

“It was for the best, Katara.” she says softly. “Come now, you'll feel better after-” she's abruptly cut off as Katara turns around at looks at her in anger.

“Are you happy now!?” she asks. “There goes my ONE chance of finding a waterbending teacher and becoming a real waterbender!” she turns away from her grandmother and starts walking away.

Sokka looks back from herding the young boys to train them some more and gestures for one of the nearby women to watch them for a moment and ran over towards Katara as she walked away. “Hey, Katara-” he's cut off as her rage latches onto him.

“What, Sokka? What do you want? To tell me that everything is fine?! That this is for the better!” her brother backs up as she pushes herself into his personal space. “I could have been able to find a _teacher_ , Sokka! Learn how to waterbend for REAL! And you just sent probably the only chance I'll ever get _away_!” she quickly wipes away any tears that collect in her eyes before they can fall. “There is something special about Aang, Sokka. We both felt it! Don't deny it! There is some sort of connection between him and us! Now we'll never know why we saw what we saw!”

Before he can respond, she turns away and runs off. With a despondent sigh, he slowly turns back and walks towards the village. He thanks the woman who watched them for him and herds them over towards where he usually trains them. He turns towards them and takes on a serious expression.

“Alright men! We have a lot of work to do!” he starts pointing them towards different tasks. “The Fire Nation could show up on our shores at any given moment! We need to ready our defenses before they can get here!”

A child pauses next to him and raises his hand. “But I need to-”

Sokka interjects before he can finish. “No potty breaks while the enemy is heading for us!” the child quickly turns back towards his given task.

xXx

A long distance away, Aang is sitting on a block of ice while his bison rests on his back in the lower section below him. Aang lets out a sigh, and Appa grunts below him in response.

“Yeah, buddy. I'll be okay.” he turns his gaze out towards the water and his eyes widen at the sight of a Fire Nation ship heading straight for the village. “Oh no! The villagers! They're in trouble!” he slides off the ice block and runs off, giving a quick 'wait here' to his furry friend as he goes out in search of a small watering hole.

xXx

In a tent back in the village, Sokka is decorating his face in war paint. Despite everything he made the younger kids do, he wasn't about to make anyone less than ten, which they all were, fight fire wielding soldiers. Once his face is finished, he puts his boomerang in its sheath on his back, then reaching down to grab his machete he gets ready to face whatever came his way.

xXx

On the metal ship, Zuko is putting on his arm and leg guards, for two reasons. First, he has always secretly felt uncomfortable when servants would help him dress, even in the most basic of clothing, so he learned how to put everything he would ever wear on himself so he would have no need for help. Second, he promised his uncle that he would wear some armor when he went down to the village. He had initially planned on going with no armor by himself. Of course uncle had protested, so they made a compromise that he would take Lieutenant Jee and one other guard of his choosing and he would wear some of his armor when he went down there.

xXx

On the wall of the small village, Sokka stands at the ready, looking out at the foggy horizon. Suddenly a light cracking sound echoes through the air and he snaps his eyes to his front waiting. The fog clears up slightly just enough for him to see a small metal boat, much smaller than the ones he saw as a child, pull into the ice. Three people jump off the boat and immediately Sokka's senses are screaming at him. There is something seriously wrong with this picture. One of the biggest ones is the boat for one thing, as he can now see their bigger vessel farther out on the water. And from what he can see, one of the figures is significantly shorter than the other two, not to mention he is wearing a lot less red than the other two with him. However, from their positions, it looks as if the shorter one is in charge, from the way the other two walk behind him, much like how the other men of the tribe walk behind his father whenever they would go on hunts or patrols. Another thing wrong is the amount of people. If they were planning on attacking, strategically they are at a disadvantage with only three people, but then again very few of the women knew how to fight well enough to defend themselves. Katara could wield a pan well enough to take down an amateur fighter thanks to Gran-Gran, and she helped some of the other younger girls learn how to use their size to their advantage. Then again, if all three of these people were firebenders, then that would put them on the high end of the battle.

Either way, this did not feel like a raid, so he was going to tread carefully here.

Once the figures had reached the base of the wall in front of him, Sokka could get a better look at them. The figure behind the short one was wearing a helmet and was decked out in full armor, however their face was covered by those weird skull mask thingies and stood behind the short one at his left. The other soldier, Jee, was not wearing a helmet and had matching armor to the other guy and short cut gray hair and a beard to match, and his skin was rather tan for a Fire Nation citizen, his face was set with a frown as he stood behind the shorter man at his right. It was when he looks at the third figure that Sokka's eyebrows raise to his forehead line.

This person couldn't have been any older than himself! Compared to the other two, Zuko was only wearing arm and leg guards, the rest of his body covered by what looked like the under clothing of the armor set, judging by the other two figures own armor. He also had the normal pale skin seen in the Fire Nation, and it stood out against the plain dark gray clothes and limb guards he wore. His black hair was tied back in one of those top knots Sokka was told they put their hair up in. The one thing; however, that really caught his attention was the guy's face. He was close enough that Sokka could see the striking gold color of his eyes that he would only ever see in a fire pit. From his eyes, he could tell the teen was looking him over as well. Looking at his eyes, though, drew him to the most attention catching thing on his face. Covering the left eye on his face and reaching back to his ear, judging from it's red state and small size, was a scar. The only reason it caught his eye was how much it stood out on this guy's pale skin, but the severity of the burn honestly didn't look _that_ bad, like a first degree burn or somewhere around there. Like the the level of scarring you would get if you held your hand over a fire for about twenty or thirty seconds.

“What do you Fire Nation thugs want?” Sokka called down to them. “Haven't you guys taken enough from our people already?”

Jee looks angry, but Zuko held his hand up and the guy settles down. Yeah, definitely something odd if a guy _his_ age has command over a guy who is probably older than his dad! The teen looks up at Sokka again and gives him a bow, which nearly has the Water Tribe boy's eyes popping out of his head. He straightens from his bow and looks back up at him.

“I'm not here to make trouble, I just need to speak with the head of the village.” he tells him.

“Well, all of our men are off fighting in the war that _your_ nation started, so I'm the oldest male in charge. I am Sokka, if you want to talk to someone, you can talk to me.” he tells them.

“I would rather we sit down at talk like people, rather than yell at each other like animals until our throats are sore.” Zuko calls up to him.

Sokka thinks it over for a minute. Should he let the enemy into the village? Normally he would say _no, no, hell no_ , but the way the arrived indicates they have no desire for violence. Taking into account how his dad would treat the situation, he's pretty sure that his dad would allow them in, as long as he had men to back him up should they suddenly attack. He turns his head to look back at the villagers, the adults, the children, Gran-Gran, Katara.

He makes his decision.

“On a few conditions. First I need to know if any of you are firebenders, I'm not going to risk my tribe's safety. You guys came relatively in peace, so I'll at least hear you out.” he tells them.

“All three of us are firebenders. Name your terms.” the banished prince says without hesitation. The guards behind him seem shocked.

“First, I will speak with you, and only you. Second, as you are a bender, I will be allowed a weapon as you do not need them to harm us. Thirdly, I will be allowed to have one person of my choosing along with me as we talk so I have a tribesman taking witness. I will not be stupid and assume you could not take two people down yourself, I am just taking precautions.” he lists to them.

Jee opens his mouth to object to, in his opinion, such ridiculous terms, but his prince holds up a hand to silence him and nods in agreement. Taking a breath, and a leap of faith, Sokka jumps down to meet them on the ground and holds his hand out in an agreement shake. Zuko ignores his guards, who had jumped into a defensive position when he jumped down, and walks up to him and shakes his hand. Slowly, giving each of them a quick look, Sokka turns around and leads them to some carved out stairs in the wall and the three of them make their way into the village. Sokka has the three of them wait while he has a quick word with his grandmother. Zuko takes the moment to observe his surroundings.

White. That's not a surprising color given his location, neither is the biting cold that Zuko holds off with his inner fire.

“Prince Zuko, what are you thinking going in alone? Your uncle sent us along precisely so that wouldn't happen!” he whispers into the young man's ear.

“First of all, we came without invite, I have to allow them some comfort in the situation. Second, don't you dare think that I can't take on two people when one is younger than myself the other more than likely not knowing how to fight. Thirdly, my uncle sent you along because he thought I would lose my temper and would burn something down. I can tell you right now that it is more likely to happen with you if you take any of their words too close to heart.” Zuko looks directly into Jee's eyes. “Remember, Lieutenant. Our people destroyed _their_ home first.”

Back with Sokka, he is talking with his gran to tell her his feelings on the matter.

“Listen to me! They did not come in violence! You can see their ship still out in the water, they could have just sailed that thing right into the ice without a care of our safety, but they took their smaller vessel instead.” he tells his Gran-Gran.

“I'm not so sure about this, Sokka. They could be a threat.” she tells him.

“They're a threat by being firebenders, Gran-Gran. Frankly, I'd rather just hear what they have to say, get it over with and get them out of the village with as little bloodshed as possible. Honestly, I'm pretty sure the guy just wants to talk, as only someone who is desperate for someone to listen to him would agree to terms that could put him at a disadvantage.” he explains.

She seems to think for a moment. “Alright, you've already invited them in. We might as well get this over with as quickly as possible.” she relents.

“Also, Katara is coming with me.” he adds.

“What?” both his sister and grandmother ask.

“I told him I would have someone accompany me during the discussion. This could be good experience for Katara. She'll act as our discussion witness.” he tells them.

His grandmother looks ready to refuse, but pauses, thinks, and gives out a sigh. “It's a terrible sign that I'm giving into you so much today.” she says. Though Sokka is sure it's because she feels guilty for how she made Katara feel by agreeing with Sokka on Aang's banishment.

Sokka gives her a hug and he and his sister walk over to the three Fire Nation soldiers who haven't moved from where he left them. Jee backs off from his arguing with his prince as the Water Tribe boy comes back, with a girl probably younger than him behind him. The girl looks remarkably like the boy, so siblings probably. And is she-yeah she's glaring at them.

“This is my sister, she will be accompanying myself during our talk so she can begin to get a feel for talks with _outsiders_.” he explains, his voice lowering on the last word.

“Lead the way.” Zuko tells him.

As Sokka and Katara turn to lead them into a tent, they hear something in the distance. The sound turns into a cry as something whizzes by, narrowly missing Zuko who manages to jump out of the way in time. Sokka and Katara are surprised to see Aang riding a penguin. He gets off the creature, who gets up and waddles away, and holds his staff ready.

“Aang!” Katara cries. “You came back!”

“Hey guys. I thought you might be in trouble.” he says uncertainly, seeing that they're not fighting.

“We're going to have a talk. Now get!” Sokka tells him, pointing away from the village.

Zuko intercepts. “I'm fairly certain that he is what I wished to speak to you about. He should be part of the discussion.”

Sokka and Katara turn towards him as Jee makes a sputtering sound. “Captain, this changes the terms you agreed to! You can't continue on old terms!” he tells him, remembering to refer to him as his ship title rather than his royal one.

“Considering that this boy is the subject of what I wished to discuss with them, I'd hardly call that a change of terms.” Zuko tells Jee as he turns towards the Water Tribe siblings and the bald boy with a nod.

Taking this as a good sign, Sokka and Katara continue walking, Katara grabbing Aang's arm as they approach an empty tent. Zuko has Jee and the other guard stand a few feet away so his hosts don't feel like they could jump in at any moment. As soon as he's in the tent, the three younger teens turn towards him, eyes narrowed.

“Alright, talk!” Sokka states.

Taking a deep breath, Zuko opens his mouth.

“I'm searching for the Avatar.” he tells them.

Aang stiffens beside Katara, who doesn't notice in favor of glaring at the firebender.

“Why?!” she spits. “So you can take away the world's last hope for peace from this wretched war? The Avatar hasn't been seen for 100 years, what makes you think that you can find them?” she asks.

“I'm fairly certain that the Avatar is that airbender beside you.” he states bluntly.

Katara and Sokka stiffen as they look over to Aang, who has his head aimed down at the ground.

“Aang?” Katara asks softly. “Is that true? Are you the Avatar?”

Aang hesitates for a moment, before nodding. “I never wanted to be the Avatar. I didn't want you guys treating me differently because I was.”

Katara hugs him. “I could never hate you because of something you were born into.” she tells him, then glares at Zuko. “If you think I'll let you take him you've got another thing coming!”

Zuko holds up his hands complacently. “I'm not here to take him to the Fire Lord, I swear.” he tells her. “I just needed to know that the Avatar really was someone else.”

“Why?” Sokka asks.

“Because I think I bent water as a child.” he says in a quiet whisper.

The three younger teen freeze in shock.

“That's not possible.” Katara states. “Aang said he was the Avatar, and only he can bend all the elements.”

“You see my scar?” Zuko gestures to his face. “I got a fire blast directly to the face, this should be a much more severe burn, but this is at least a light first degree burn. I think I healed my scar a little with waterbending. Please, I just want to know what is going on. I know as well as anyone that there is only one Avatar, but there is no other way than using water to heal that could have saved my face from much worse scarring.” his voice takes on a desperate tone that neither Water Tribe sibling had ever heard from any Fire Nation soldier. “Please look into my eyes and tell me I'm lying.” he asks, looking at Aang.

Aang can hear the honestly in his voice, but he raises his eyes to look directly into molten gold irises.

Both their worlds turn white.

.

_Zuko never thought he could see more white than one could in either of the poles, but here he was, standing in a large space of white nothing. Just as he gets ready to start throwing fire, colors bleed into existence and Zuko finds himself in a rather familiar place. Granted when he came here it was desolate, abandoned, and unfriendly looking. Now, the Southern Air Temple was bright, filled with giggling children, and friendlier than any other place he had ever seen so far. Yellow, orange, and light brown colors dominated their clothing colors, though given Aang's cloths, that shouldn't be a surprise. Everywhere he looked there were bald headed boys and men, and girls with their hair shaved back to the top of their heads. Some paces away is one person who stands out like a sore thumb, not only because his hair is the only one not shaved, but because of a red colored flame ornament in his hair. The guy is rather young looking, given he is barely any taller than some of the other teens, so Zuko would put him at at least in his late teens._

“ _Hey, Roku. Ready for our flight test today?” another airbender asks, walking up to the teen. Zuko is shocked to see that the person is completely blurred, like one of his paintings after his sister dumped water over them._

Wait, Roku? _Zuko thinks._ But that was the name of the previous Fire Nation..... Avatar. _Zuko realizes that he is looking at Avatar Roku when he began his Avatar training. But why was he seeing this? It made no sense at all._

“ _You bet I'm ready, I can't wait to test out these brand new gliders.” Roku declares as he holds up a staff, similar to the one Aang holds. “I just hope this time I don't end up in a_ tree _.” he states, giving a_ look _to the airbender._

“ _Why are you looking at me like that?” the airbender asks in a voice that clearly states he's the guilty party._

“ _You know why, Gyatso.” Roku replies as he and the other airbenders snap open their gliders and take to the skies._

_Suddenly everything blurs entirely and darkness reclaims his vision._

_._

Seriously? Again?! _Aang thinks as he is once more in the white expanse of nothingness. He waits and is rewarded with the arrival of colors in the form of many,_ many _layers of red. He looks around and sees Avatar Yangchen decked out in a red training tunic, which is basically pants, no shoes, and a short sleeved red shirt that made Aang blush because never had he seen an airbender show so much skin! Yangchen punches her fists out in front of her and fires several fireballs towards some rock targets a few feet away. Then she jumps into the air and does a front flip and a trail of flame follows her right foot which she has sticking out. She lands on the ground, her foot still shooting flames out, but now forwards, running along the ground._

“ _Impressive, my dear.” a voice calls out. Aang doesn't even bother to look, knowing by now they'll be blurred out of recognition._

_She dips into the traditional bow and flame response one shows to a teacher. “Thank you, I could not have gotten as far as I have without your help.” she sneaks a glance up towards her teacher with a smirk on her face. “Sifu Hotman.”_

“ _Confounded it all! I have been a teacher for 54 years, I would rather you not use such a silly term when you address me, you mongoose-squirrel! 50 hotsquats!” the voice calls._

_Yangchen does not lose her smirk as she starts her reps. “Always worth it.”_

_Aang is surprised to see such a side in an airbender, as he usually only saw that sort of behavior in his own teacher, Gyatso. He barely has anymore time to think on it as his vision fades._

.

Sokka and Katara had been on edge since the Fire Navy ship showed up, even more so once they were alone with the youngest person they had seen wearing the armor, well half of it anyways. So they were downright shocked when Zuko asked Aang to look at him and say he was lying. Actually no, that wasn't what shocked them, no that was when the two made eye contact and both their eyes glowed with a bright blue light. Katara gasped as this reminded her of what happened with Aang and Sokka.

“Sokka! This is the same thing that happened with you and Aang!” she tugs on his sleeve.

“Katara we don't even know what _this_ is!” he exclaims, taking mind to keep his voice down so as not to invite the other soldiers outside inside.

“Shh!” she holds her finger to her lips as she watches the two of them.

They stay like that for about a minute before the glow fades and Aang falls back, only for Katara to catch him. Zuko falls to his knees as he rubs at his eyes, fighting off a serious migraine.

“Aang! Are you okay?” she asks softly.

“I'm fine.” he states as he looks up at Zuko, who is shaking his head. “Sokka, Katara, I need the two of you to look into his eyes.”

“What?” the siblings, as well as Zuko, ask in unison.

“This has happened between the three of us, as well as just now with him. It only happened when we looked into each others eyes. I just have a feeling.” Aang explains, rubbing the top of his head.

The siblings look at each other before Katara stands up and walks over to Zuko.

“Katara, really?” Sokka asks exasperated.

“Yes, Sokka. Unlike you, I want to find out what is going on, and this seems to be the best way to do it!” she explains, looking directly into her brother's mirrored blue eyes.

Sokka can only groan. “Fine.” before he follows her to kneel next to Zuko.

He looked at the both of them, carefully avoiding their eyes, before they grab his shoulders and looked directly into his eyes while he's forced to look at Sokka's left eye and Katara's right one.

Their worlds twirl into white.

.

Why is it that Aang was right? _Sokka asks himself as he finds himself in an expansion of white. Color quickly vaporizes into existence and Sokka sees red, red,_ _ **RED**_ _! He looks around and sees what looks like Kuruk, only slightly younger than when he was airbending in that last vision he got with Aang. His clothes are simply a pair of red pants, as he has neither a shirt nor any shoes. He is currently squatting in the middle of a large space with stone flooring. He has his hands cupped together, and there, floating above his hands, is a small flame about the size of his fist. At first it doesn't look like he is doing anything, but upon closer inspection, Sokka realizes that the flame is pulsing in rhythm with Kuruk's breathing. As he_ _breathes_ _in, the flame shrinks, when he_ _breathes_ _out, it enlarges back to_ _its_ _original size. He continues just like that._

_Breath in. Shrink._

_Breath out. Enlarge._

_Breath in. shrink._

_Breath out. Enlarge._

“ _Once you're done with this exercise, we'll move onto using candles.” a blurry figure states._

“ _Why candles?” Kuruk asks, breaking pattern, the ball of flame shrinking to half its size._

“ _The more candles you can do that exercise with, the better your control. Control is the one thing you need to understand more than anything else before you move onto anything more advanced. This will be especially hard considering your native element is fire's opposite.” the figure explains. “Now start over, you broke your concentration. You need to get your control to where you can separate your attention without causing your flame to change in size.”_

“ _Darn it.” Kuruk murmurs before returning to his exercise._

Interesting. _Sokka thinks to himself as the world blurs and fades._

.

_Katara finds herself in the world of white again. She looks around and has to rub her eyes as the sudden rush of bright reds flood her vision._ Ow, ow, ow! _Katara murmurs as her sight adjusts. She appears to be at something akin to a festival, like the ones her tribe would hold on days of a new baby's survival to a full month, or when a tribesman makes a great achievement. And there is so. Much._ _ **RED!**_ _Seriously! Who needs this much red! She looks around, taking note of the new foods and delicacies._

“ _Everyone, please settle down.” a voice calls over the crowd._

_Katara looks up at the blurry figure who is standing on a stage._

“ _I would like to introduce to you the man who has not only just finished his firebending training, but also reached his twenty first birthday!” the crowd cheers. “Give a cheer for Avatar Kuruk!” the crowd gets louder as a figure dressed in fine red robes walks onto the stages._

_It looks like an older version of the man she saw back in her sister tribe._ Wait, did he call him **Avatar** Kuruk! He's a previous Avatar! _Her mind cranks as the man bows to the crowd._

“ _Thank you for throwing this party for me, everyone! Before we get this party going, my teacher suggested that I show you what I have learned of your glorious element!” he bellows to the people._

Glorious? It wasn't so glorious when the Fire Nation burned and took my mother's body away. _Katara thought angrily._

_Kuruk bows to the crowd before waving his arms around him in circling patterns. Streams of flames began to follow his hands as he slowly began to turn on his heels. Suddenly he did a rapid spin before punching both fists out into the sky, a dragon seeming to come to life from his flames. The crowd 'wow's as Kuruk makes the flame and bows to the crowd._

I hate to say it, but that actually was _kind_ of pretty. _Katara reluctantly thought as her vision faded._

.

_Zuko is thrown off balance at being confronted with the brightness of the white once again, seriously this stuff made the snow from the South Pole look dull! He let out a sigh of relief as color bled into his sight and he found the sight still decorated in white, but the added color of blue was merciful on his poor eyes._

The Northern Water Tribe. _Zuko thought in amazement._ I've never seen it from this far inside. _He thinks as he realizes that he's in one of the inner parts of the city._

“ _Agh! That's freezing!” a voice cried._

_Zuko turns to see a soaked figure shivering in a blue parka a bit fancier than what he saw the people of the Southern Tribe wearing. As the figure pushed his wet hair out of his face, Zuko realized it was Roku! Older than when he was at the Air Temple, definitely as he had facial hair now._

“ _Ha! Should have watched your back! I told you I would get you back for dunking those ice cubes in my shoes, Roku!” a blurry person cried as they rode past him on a waterbent wave._

“ _That was revenge for sneaking a fish into my bed furs.” Roku grumbles under his breath. “Oh_ _it's_ _on!” he cries as he lifts himself up on a wave of snow and raced after the figure._

_He quickly moved to the_ _rooftops_ _, using the water he was dunked with and the bit he always carried around with him to act as his bridge between buildings. He is swift in his pursuit of his target, who slows to a stop, assuming that Roku gave up. Quick as a lion-cheetah, he jumps down from above and quickly freezes the figure in a pillar of ice, leaving only their head free to_ _breathe_ _. He grins as his victim struggles to get free, but with their legs and arms bound, they're trapped._

“ _Gotcha.” Roku says with glee as he sinks the person into the ground until only their upper body was above ground with their arms still trapped beneath. “Next time, don't go looking for revenge for something that was done in response to a challenge YOU laid!” he laughed in a mockingly evil voice as the person cried for him to let them go as he walked away._

Huh. _Zuko thought._ Who knew that Roku had such a sense of humor. I didn't think Avatars could be funny.

_Suddenly his vision warps from the icy whites and blues of the north to the familiar red hues of home. Not only that, but he was in a rather familiar spot he knew by heart as his... mother.. would take him past here to go to and from the palace when they went to any festivals. Over by a familiar tree Zuko can see two teenage boys practicing their firebending together. One wears the fire ornament that Zuko had seen Roku wear at the Air Temple and the Northern Water Tribe, but the face of the one currently wearing it was not familiar to him as Roku. He looked at the other teen and realized that it was a rather young Roku! Probably at least a year or two before he would be at the traditional age that Avatars were informed who they were. So fifteen or fourteen at least. The two seem to be in a friendly spar, performing moves that Zuko had never even seen his sis-_ _**her** _ _perform. Suddenly the other teen moved forward and held a fist right to Roku's chest._

“ _Looks like I'm the winner again, Roku.” he says._

“ _You're kidding right?” Roku asks as he looks pointedly down._

_The other teen glances down to see his partner is holding a fist right at his family jewels._

“ _Foul! Roku!” the teen cries with laughter as the two pull apart. “Threatening to end the family line can end with you in prison, don't you know?” he asks jokingly as the two sit down._

“ _Nah, your family would never suspect the crown prince's best friend! Now would they, Sozin?” Roku returns in the same manner of voice._

_Zuko gasps and takes a step back._ That's my great-great-grandfather... Fire Lord Sozin. The man who started this war... _Suddenly Zuko felt sick. His great-great-grandfather had been friends with the previous Avatar. Grew up with-_ _ **trained**_ _with him! And he was responsible for starting a war his friend was suppose to keep from happening! Zuko knew that as Fire Lord Sozin had, at some point, met the Fire Nation Avatar, as is usual, but never had he thought they had been_ _ **friends**_ _!!_

_Zuko is grateful for the darkness to envelope him as the vision ends._

.

Aang watches as three pairs of eyes glow the same luminescent glow of the Avatar State and wonders what could this all mean? Why were they getting visions? Katara said she saw the Northern Water Tribe when she looked at him, Sokka didn't mention what he saw, and he saw Yangchen on her Avatar journey to master the elements. He looks up as he hears a sharp intake of breath as Sokka and Katara sit back on their rears and Zuko scoots back just a little bit.

“What... the heck?” Zuko states.

“What did you see?” Aang questions, aiming the question at all of them.

“I saw Avatar Kuruk at the beginning of his firebending training..” Sokka replies.

“I saw him at the end of his firebending training.” Katara adds.

They all looked at the firebender, who turns his gaze to the side.

“I saw Avatar Roku in his waterbending and... firebending training.” he answers. “And when I looked at you,” he adds, looking at Aang. “I saw Roku during his airbending training.”

Silence reins as they all look at each other, almost expecting they to be pulled into another vision. Sokka wipes off the warrior's paint, feeling like it really wasn't necessary at the moment. Zuko slowly gets to his feet.

“I'm going to let my soldiers know it's going to be a while.” he answers. “I'll be right back.” he leaves the tent, leaving the other three in silence.

“What is going on?” Sokka asks, looking at Aang.

“Don't look at me!” he cries. “I've never had this happen before! And I don't know if it's happened to any previous Avatars either!”

“Well, _somebody_ better have answers!” Sokka grumbled just as Zuko returned to the tent.

“Maybe we should start over.” he says softly. “My name is Zuko, banished ex-prince of the Fire Nation. I apologize for everything my nation has done to you and I know that it will never be enough for one-hundred years worth of suffering.” he says as he gets to his knees and touches his forehead to the ground in a bow.

To say that Sokka, Katara, and Aang were shocked would be the understatement of the One-hundred Year War! Here, right before them, was the _prince_ of their enemy nation, descendant of the man who started this damned war, _bowing_ before them like they were the royalty instead of him! Wait-did he say _banished_ _ex_ -prince? Why would the Fire Lord banish his own son? Never mind that! Anger! That's all the Water Tribe siblings can feel! Their people suffered, their waterbenders taken, their _mother's body_ dead and taken from them and he said he was _sorry_! Then again, he was acting different then any prince _would_ act... Caution. That's all Aang can feel. This teen's ancestors started a war that has thrown the entire world out of wack, and he's _apologizing for them_?

To say Zuko was nervous was a mistake, he was downright fearful! Only years of living with a nightmare and fooling his uncle allows him to keep his face clear of such feelings. He is in the middle of the second most affected place in the worst behind the Air Nomads and he's giving his name as the son of the man who holds the title that has given them so much grief? And he just gives an **apology**? He must have some sort of inner death wish, because he feels like he just signed his death warrant!

Suddenly there are gentle hands on his shoulders, pulling him up from his prostrate bow. He slowly looks up to see the airbender looking at him with a smile. Wait, a smile? He just admitted to being related to the guy who killed his people! In a movement to quick to stop, Aang pulls Zuko into a hug. The golden eyed teen feels the shock rip through his body as his eyes widen at the boy's actions. He casts a glance at the other two to see that they too are just as shocked as he is. He is released from the hug as Aang pulls back with the same smile.

“My name is Aang! I'm an airbender originating from the Southern Air Temple! Nice to meet you! Please don't bring me to your father..” he adds awkwardly at the end.

He turns to look at the two Water Tribe teens who look at each other before crawling forward to sit next to Aang.

“My name is Sokka, son of Hakoda, chief of the Southern Water Tribe, and I'm a non-bender.” he introduces as he extends his hand, having a hard time believing he's actually doing this.

Zuko takes the hand gingerly, not wanting to make the young man uncomfortable and gives it a few firm shakes.

As they release each others hand, Sokka rests his on his sister's right shoulder. She looks vaguely uncomfortable for a moment, but when Aang loops his arm around her left one, she smiles at him before turning towards him again.

“My name is Katara, daughter of Hakoda, chief of the Southern Water Tribe, younger sister of Sokka, and...” she takes a huge breath, and sends a quick prayer to Tui and La. “.. the only waterbender in the entire Southern Water Tribe since the Fire Nation raids took them all away from us.” she introduces firmly as she takes a bite of courage and clasps his hand in hers.

Suddenly, all their eyes glow a luminescent and all their interconnecting hands glow. Sokka's hand on Katara's shoulder, Aang holding Katara's arm, and Katara's hand grasping Zuko's.

.

_The four teens slowly opened their eyes to find themselves all standing in a strange woodland area. Sokka quickly wrapped his left arm around his sister, who clutches Aang's arm like a lifeline. Zuko was left floundering, trying to see where they were until Aang reached out and grasped his arm and pulled him over. Once they were all somewhat calm, they looked at each other and noticed that they were all glowing a light blue, the same blue each of their eyes had glowed when they got their visions. Was this another vision? But the others were here, that didn't happen last time._

“ _Pretty sure we weren't anywhere near this much vegetation a few moments ago.” Sokka points out._

“ _No? Really?” Katara asks sarcastically._

“ _Hey, you guys settle down.” Aang interjects._

“ _You three?” Zuko butts in. “Not helping matters.”_

_A loud '_ _**crack** _ _' echos behind them and the teens turn around, startled. Nothing is there, but that doesn't make them feel better._

“ _It's a pleasure to finally meet you.” a male voice announces from behind them._

_The four teens let out startled yells as they cling to each other, Zuko ignoring the fact that he just met these people, and Sokka and Katara ignoring the fact that one of them is Fire Nation. If you ask them about it later they will deny it vehemently. Standing before them are four figures, each wearing the clothes of one of the four nations._

_The first is a middle aged woman with long brown hair. She wears yellow and orange robes like the ones Aang had seen adult nomads wearing. Zuko recognized them from his vision. Sokka remembers having seen in passing during his own vision. On the woman's head is a light blue arrow, much like the one Aang wears on his own._

_The second figure is a man with brown skin dressed in a blue and white parka, with a highly elaborate_ _headdress_ _. His clothes were more elaborate that what she had seen him in before, but Katara recognized him when she first saw him waterbending. Zuko recognized the elaborate parka design from his travels. On the man's chest is a symbol of the Water Tribes._

_The third figure is a lady in green with elaborate face paint and a fancy_ _headpiece_ _. She wore a uniform only Zuko recognized from having made incognito trips to her home island. In one hand she held a golden fan._

_The fourth, and final, figure was much older than the other four. His hair and beard were completely white, which stuck out against his red robes. None of the others paid much attention to the detail of his robes, such as the fact that his clothes were made for someone who had money. The fabric was of high material, and the stitching was highly impressive. Only Zuko recognized him for the headpiece he had seen the man wear in two of his visions._

“ _Avatar Yangchen.” Aang states with a bow._

“ _Avatar Kuruk.” Sokka and Katara give the man a bow, unsure of how to act in this situation._

“ _Avatar Kyoshi and Avatar Roku.” Zuko finishes, giving respectful bows to the last two figures._

“ _I don't suppose YOU know what's going on?” Aang asks in a small voice._

“ _Where are we?” Sokka asks._

_The four of them speak in unison. “The spirit world.”_

_Yangchen smiles. “We know precisely what is going on, young airbender.”_

“ _But before we can explain what is happening.” Kuruk starts off._

“ _We need to go back to the day this issue started.” Kyoshi states in a gruff feminine voice._

“ _When you ran away from home, Aang.” Roku says gently._

_Aang flinches and looks down. “I ran away because I couldn't handle being the Avatar and because I couldn't bear being separated from my teacher, Monk Gyatso. I was scared at what they were doing, I was upset that none of the other monk children wanted to play with me anymore because they thought it would be unfair to have the Avatar on any one team. Everything was changing and I couldn't handle it, so I ran away before they could happen without my consent. I flew Appa into a storm and the last thing I remember is falling into the ocean then.. nothing.”_

“ _When you fell into the ocean Aang,” Yangchen begins. “your situation was one of peril, and you were in danger of dying. So the Avatar State activated itself to save you.”_

“ _When an inexperienced Avatar is in danger of dying, or experiencing a strong negative emotion, such as grief or anger,” Kyoshi continued. “the Avatar State will activate in order to save its current incarnation.”_

“ _Okay, but that doesn't explain all the glowy eye business and the weird visions.” Sokka complains._

_Kuruk steps up. “When Aang activated the Avatar State, his spirit was in a terrible state of turmoil. One of the reasons why it is tradition to wait until the Avatar is sixteen is so they are of a more mature state of mind to deal with the abrupt change.” he looks directly at Aang. “By telling you four years too early, you had been dealt a dangerous blow to your spirit. You could not handle the burden of being the Avatar, so much so that when the Avatar State activated, the discord in your soul was so great that it actually torn the Avatar Spirit into pieces.”_

“ _Wait, what do you mean 'torn into pieces'?” Katara asks, confused._

“ _The Avatar Spirit, the piece that is reincarnated into humans, is composed of five pieces. Water, Earth, Fire, Air, and Spirit.” Yangchen informs them. “These are the pieces that make up the role of the Avatar, one for each element, and one for the part that allows the Avatar to act as the bridge between the world of the living and the spirit world.”_

“ _Soo...” Aang starts awkwardly. “I go into the Avatar State, the soul breaks and what? I'm not the Avatar anymore?”_

_Roku chuckles. “Well, you're not_ _**the** _ _Avatar anymore.” at their confused gazes he smiles. “More like_ _**an** _ _Avatar at this point.”_

“ _'An'?” Zuko asks. “That is referring to more than one.” at their calm gazes his eyes widen. “Wait, so there are more Avatars?!” he exclaims._

“ _ **What?!!?**_ _” the other three cry, looking at the Fire Nation teen._

“ _Five in total, to be precise.” Kyoshi clarifies._

“ _How does that even work?!” Sokka asks in disbelief._

“ _When the Avatar Spirit fractured into its five basic pieces, they spread across the world to find new homes.” Kyoshi explains. “The piece representing Air remained in you,” she gestures to Aang with her fan. “because it was your native element.”_

“ _What about the other pieces, where are they?” Katara asks._

“ _Well, four of them, are right here.” Kuruk states with a smile on his face._

“ _Where? Who?” Aang asks looking around._

“ _You.” the four Avatars speak in unison gesturing to the four teens._

_The teen's bodies seem to petrify into stone._ _**They** _ _were Avatars? That didn't make any sense! They couldn't be Avatars! There wasn't anything that-unless.._

“ _The visions.” Zuko rasps out, his throat suddenly dry._

“ _Yes.” Yangchen nods her head. “Aang is the piece for Air. You” she points to Katara. “are Water.” she turns to Sokka. “You are the Spirit.” her gaze lands on Zuko. “And you are Fire.”_

“ _Why us?” Katara asks, suddenly feeling small under the gazes of the four Avatars and the new knowledge that was heaped upon them._

“ _Because,” Roku begins gently, not wanting to send any of them into shock. “the pieces could not just nestle within any random person. The pieces chose you because of the blood that runs through each of your veins.”_

“ _Blood?” Aang asks confused._

“ _The same applies for you, young airbender, but it would not have made much of a difference otherwise, your bloodline just added to your ability of being worthy of bearing the Air piece.” Kuruk states looking at Aang. “Each of you were chosen by the piece you possess due to who you are descended from.”_

“ _What are you talking about? Bloodlines?” Sokka asks, thoroughly through with everything that has happened within the last twenty-four hours._

“ _Each of you is one of our descendants.” Kyoshi states bluntly. “Except for mine, they're not here, but since this is the first time so many pieces have been in such close vicinity in one-hundred years, the strong connection allowed me to show myself to you.”_

“ _Descendants...” Zuko repeats faintly. “What...?”_

“ _Your mother, prince Zuko,” Roku says, his voice soft. “is my granddaughter.”_

“ _Your grandmother, Kanna,” Kuruk turned to the two Water Tribe siblings. “originated from the Northern Water Tribe. Several decades ago, she left in order to escape the bias opinion against females and came to live in her sister tribe. She married a young man and had a child, her husband died when that child turned ten, animal attack. That child, was your father, Chief Hakoda.” the two stare at him in surprise. “Your grandmother, back when she lived in your sister tribe, was sought after by many men, not only for her beauty, but for her bloodline. You see, her family was the last living link of my daughter, Sesi. Your grandmother, and your father, and you two in turn, are my descendants.” their mouths hit the ground._

“ _And you, my airbender.” Yangchen turns to face Aang, who is looking at her with wide eyes. “Though you never knew, and never would have known until you reached half a century, you are of my lineage. Records are always kept of who came from which pair of nuns and monks in the case of the grown child wishing to meet their parent. The monks of all four temples always kept an eye on any lineage of any airbending Avatars, and their well kept records would show you that I am your ancestor on your mother's side.”_

“ _As for me, I lived for 230 years, I had a few kids over the years. Many of them I couldn't raise myself due to outside circumstances so I left them with the fathers.” Kyoshi adds in. “After several children and missing a couple of birthdays, I eventually decided to just stop trying to be a mom when I ended up being the Avatar more than the other anyways. I had to choose and I picked the one I couldn't walk away from.” she glares as Katara gives her a horrified look. “Don't give me that look! There were worse ways I could have dealt with the situations. More often than not I pretended not to know them so Chin the Conqueror, the dictator at the time, would not use them against me. Starting a family and settling down was not only dangerous to me, but to anyone I made a family of, especially during that time period. Over the past few decades all of my lines have slowly died off from diseases, killings, or just by not having kids. Now, there is only one line left with my blood, and they are somewhere in the Earth Kingdom.”_

_The four teens were stunned with shock. They were related to previous Avatars. It was weird for Sokka and Katara to think of their dad as an Avatar descendant, but looking closely at Kuruk's face, they could see where their father's looks came from. Aang was also surprised as he was under the assumption that no one ever learned of the nun who birthed them or the monk they nestled with that year. It was weird to think that he had an actual mother and father once, as the monks never treated them like they were their own, except for Gyatso. Zuko; however, felt sick. He felt his knees give out from beneath him and faintly heard worried voices from Aang and Katara, Sokka just sounded confused. They were trying to get him to respond, but Zuko shook his head as he felt that should he dare try to speak he would lose his stomach. Someone was gently rubbing his back and he was took focused on keeping the bile down to see who it was. After a while, Zuko felt like he could speak without losing his breakfast._

“ _Are you okay?” he looks to his right to see Katara kneeling next to him, her brother behind her, both of their blue eyes staring at him._

“ _Avatar Roku is my great-grandfather, and so is Fire Lord Sozin...” I murmur quietly._

“ _Well yeah.” Sokka agrees. “That's what he just said.”_

“ _They were friends...” I added, noticing how the three of them stiffen. “They grew up together... and he just... did that...” Zuko covered his mouth again as he felt his stomach flip._

_A large, but gentle, hand rested on Zuko's shoulder, causing him to look up into the eyes of his great-grandfather. “Yes, Sozin and I were good friends when we were young. When he became Fire Lord, he wanted to spread his rule to the other nations, and he tried to get me to go along with it, but I refused. As the Avatar, I could not show favoritism towards any one nation. Sozin did not understand that once I became the Avatar, I could not be loyal to the Fire Nation alone. On the night of my death, the volcano on my home island erupted, I tried to hold it off long enough to let the people of the island get far enough away to survive. I couldn't stop it alone, but then Sozin came to help, and for a while, I thought I had my old friend back. Then, I breathed in the toxic gas of the volcano, and he left me for dead so he could finally put his plans for the world into motion. The next Avatar,” he glanced up at Aang. “would still be growing and wouldn't be a threat to him for a long time. Long enough for him to get his army together. It was when he kick started the war that he eradicated all the Air Temples of their airbenders. Hoping to kill of the airbending Avatar before they could become realized.”_

_Aang's eyes widened, and then filled up with tears. “My people... are really gone?” his voice was small, quiet, and raspy._

_Roku bows his head. “I'm sorry, Aang.” he says mournfully. “If I had been more decisive, and had not let my feelings of Sozin once being my friend blind my decisions, I could have stopped the war before it started, and probably saved your people from extermination..”_

_The tears fall down from gray eyes and feminine arms envelope him. “I'm sorry, Aang.” Katara whispers, trying not to cry herself. “I wish I had been wrong.”_

_Aang looked at Zuko. “That's why you apologized.” he recalled. “You were apologizing for your great-grandfather's actions towards my people.”_

“ _Nothing I can ever say will make up for what you've lost... I'm sorry.” Zuko answers truthfully._

“ _Do not blame yourself for the mistakes of Sozin and myself.” Roku tells him. “They are our burden to bear.”_

_Silence reins as the eight figures slowly gather themselves._

“ _So...” Sokka breaks the silence. “Now what?” he asks, looking at the dead Avatars._

“ _You four need to master the elements, and end the war.” Kyoshi explains. “However, it will be a bit difficult since you lot will have to learn it a different way.”_

“ _What do you mean?” Zuko asks._

_Yangchen holds her hands out. “Since each of you holds a piece of the Avatar Soul, you each will have a better inclination towards one of the elements, but you can still learn them. It's why you two,” she_ _gestures_ _to Katara and Zuko. “could only bend one element.”_

“ _But I bent water as a child.” Zuko responds. “My scar..” he touches his face lightly. “The scar should have been a lot worse. Every doctor I've seen has said that due to the circumstances, the scar should be a lot darker, and I should barely be able to see out of my left eye. But when I was alone and tended to it myself, I tried to clean the wound with a wet cloth and when I held it to my face, there was a glowing and when it faded, my scar was much better.”_

“ _That was a touch of survival instinct.” Kuruk explains. “Your body was injured and if your wound had gotten infected, the disease could have killed you. So, it is likely that the Avatar State activated and used waterbending to heal your scar. Since it was probably a bit old by the time that happened, it couldn't get rid of it completely, so it just made it less severe, which is why you even still have a scar at all.”_

“ _Is me being the Spirit piece, or whatever,” Sokka makes a vague gesture with his hand. “the reason that I never showed any bending? Because I've always been considered a non-bender.”_

“ _Yes.” Kyoshi nods. “Out of the five hosts, you have the best spiritual connection with the spirit world. Which you will have to learn in order for the others to as well.”_

“ _What do you mean?” Katara asks._

“ _You all will only be able to learn an element based on the proficiency level of the one who has that piece.” Yangchen lays out for them. “For example, since Aang is a master airbender, learning his element will be easy since he has a good grasp on it. In your case,” she looks at Katara. “you have very little knowledge in the way of your element, so the others can only learn what you do. As you improve, the others will be able to as well.”_

“ _But-but!” Sokka interrupts. “I have no training whatsoever in spirits! Not to mention I don't know any way TO train in that!”_

_Zuko raises his hand a little. “I have some books and scrolls that can help people get more in touch with their spiritual side. Not to mention meditation helps.”_

“ _Zuko will be very helpful in learning your trades.” Roku says with a smile. “He has been quite the information gatherer these past three years.”_

_Zuko looks down with a blush._

“ _So, what exactly are we going to do?” Katara asks softly._

“ _The scrolls and books Zuko has can only take you so far.” Kuruk elaborates. “You will need to go to the North Pole so you,” he looks at Katara. “can learn waterbending so they others can pick it up.”_

“ _But..” Zuko interrupts. “I can't teach them firebending. I'm barely average at firebending. Better than what my uncle currently thinks I'm at, but I'm no master.”_

“ _You are creative.” Yangchen states. “You took the idea to use other bending styles in your firebending instead of just the regular fire katas. You're firebending is better than you think, child.” she turns towards the other three. “Take his decisions as a shining example to look up to.”_

“ _You use other bending styles with firebending?” Aang asks looking at Zuko._

“ _You can really throw a person off balance using fire with a waterbending kata. Or an earthbender while moving like an airbender. Though I'm still a bit shaking on that style, I only found a couple scrolls that were legible.” he explains, feeling excited to tell someone about his discovery._

_Sokka and Katara were surprised to find that they actually wanted to learn more about what Zuko discovered. Their resentment towards the banished prince was also fading quite fast, and they were actually excited to get to know him._

“ _Now, it would be best if you didn't go around telling everyone that you're all the Avatar.” Kyoshi informs them. “Not only would they not believe you, but the ones that do might try to use that knowledge selfishly. Only tell those you think need to know. If you feel that someone needs to know, just link hands and concentrate on your Avatar fracture, your eyes will glow to show the Avatar Soul.”_

“ _But there is still one of us missing.” Sokka points out._

“ _Yes, but they'll be useless right now if you take them to the North Pole. No earth for them to use. Once you've mastered water enough that you can learn on the go, you can head to the Earth Kingdom to find your fifth piece.” Kyoshi explains. “Now go.”_

_The four Avatars lift the teens to their feet and stand in a circle around them. Before they do anything, Zuko runs forward to give Roku a hug. The Fire Nation Avatar is surprised, but his face soon takes on a gentle look as he wraps his arms around the boy and holds him tightly. Sokka and Katara look at each other before doing the same to Kuruk, who looks very surprised, but he wraps his arms around them and hugs them back. Aang looks at Yangchen, who just smiles and opens her arms, allowing Aang to run into her embrace and feel, just for a moment, that this is what a mother's hug feels like. The teens soon let go of their ancestors and move back to the center of the circle. The Avatars raise their right hands and the teens feel themselves fading from the spirit world._

“ _Go.” they hear the four adults saying. “Go and save the world.”_

.

Four pairs of eyes slowly blink as they focus back into the real world. They found themselves in the same positions on the ground as before. Sokka kneeling next to Katara, who was holding Zuko's hand, while Aang was holding Katara's arm. The four of them de-tangle from one another and sit down in a circle so they can see each other.

“What now?” Katara asks.

“For one, we got to find a way to ditch my ship.” Zuko puts in. “I'm not taking us anywhere NEAR the Fire Nation until we're ready.”

“If we just leave now, I don't want to think of what will happen to the village.” Sokka adds.

“I doubt my uncle would do anything to hurt them, but I can't know that for sure.” Zuko cups his chin in thought. “We'll need some time to sail away from the pole until we're far enough that we can lose them and they won't be able to turn back without losing some serious ground on us.”

“'Losing ground'?” Aang asks.

“There is no way my uncle will take me disappearing now that I've found 'the Avatar',” he gestures to Aang. “without going after me. After everything he gave up to come with me, he's not just going to take me vanishing like he would a cup of tea. Not pleasantly. He _will_ come after us.”

“Why not just take him with us?” Katara asks. “And what do you mean 'after everything he gave up'?” she questions.

“I was banished from my home, uncle was not. He _chose_ to leave his life in the palace to come with me on my search for the Avatar. As for taking him with us, I can't honestly say what uncle would do if he found out our secret.” he pulls his legs up and wraps his arms around them. “He was never banished, so he can still return home without any consequences. He came with me out of his own choice, but despite everything, uncle still likes to live big. I can tell that much from his shopping sprees every time we pull into port.” he says with a small smile on his face. “As it is, I've been lying to uncle for three years. I had never intended to bring the Avatar to my father-I mean the Fire Lord at all. As it is, if anyone found out that I was refusing the Fire Lord's order, I would be considered a traitor. And uncle has orders to execute any traitors he comes across.”

“Surely he wouldn't..” Katara asks. “You're his nephew.”

“I want to believe that he wouldn't, but when you take in what he did at Ba Sing Se, I find myself having a hard time doing so.” Zuko mumbles.

“Okay, so get far away from home, then loose the ship.” Sokka clarifies. “Should be easy enough.”

“Not really.” Zuko beats down. “I can count the _non-benders_ on one hand, and there are at least thirty crew members on that ship. I'm proficient at firebending, but there is no way I can take on my uncle, and between you currently being bending-less,” he looks at Sokka. “You barely know how to do it at all,” he looks at Katara. “And one young master airbender, they would take us down in a heartbeat. We could never take them on.”

Sokka thinks for a moment. “Maybe... we don't have to.” he says.

“If we want to get away, yeah we do.” Aang says.

“Not if they think Zuko told us a lie.” Sokka says. The others look at him confused. “What if they think Zuko told us some lie in order to get us to come quietly? We'd really be lying to them and once the time is right, we hightail it on out of there!”

Zuko thinks on that. “That could work. My uncle might not like it, but he would never sabotage my 'plans' by telling you guys the 'truth' either.”

“Okay! I've got it!” Sokka cries. “Here's the plan...”

xXx

Jee and the other soldier are getting fairly antsy the longer their prince is inside that tent. Jee would like to just bust in there, but that would backfire on the prince's word. So here he stays, too far away to hear, but close enough to rush in to help should things go south. Well.... _downhill_. He is relieved when the prince finally exits the tent with the three other teens and giving them nods and handshakes. Wait-handshakes? What did they _talk_ about it there? Prince Zuko guides the airbender-the Avatar- over to them.

“Please go with him to retrieve his sky bison, he'll be coming with us.” he leaves the airbender with them as he walks back towards the Water Tribe children who lead him over to the elder woman the boy was talking to earlier.

There is a bit of nodding and grumbling before the teens guide the woman into the tent. How many chats is the prince going to have?! They reluctantly follow the bald child as he leads them out of the village to go search for his bison. Those things are still alive? They end up coming to a large ice formation with a large, fluffy _thing_ curled up beneath it.

Oh why couldn't he have stayed on the ship?

xXx

They knew convincing their Gran-Gran to let them go with the big Fire Nation ship would be difficult, but come on!

“Gran-gran! I'll get to go to the Northern Water Tribe!” Katara says, trying to use the woman's guilt from earlier as a way of getting her on her side.

“No.” it seems she was over that.

“We'll get to see the world.” Sokka tries.

“No.”

“We might find dad!” they both try.

“No!”

“Gran-gran! Come on!” Sokka whines.

“You're asking me to let you go on a Fire Nation _ship_ , with a crew of _firebenders_ , with the _Avatar_ on board with you, with a _banished prince_ as the captain? And you're expecting me to say _yes_?!”

“Um, yes?”

“It's not happening, Sokka!” she says sternly. “I've let you do quite enough foolish things today, and this is not going to be one of them.”

“We should tell her.” Zuko says from out of nowhere.

Sokka and Katara turn to him, wide eyed. “Seriously?!”

“Maybe if she knows the truth, she'll understand that I mean no harm.” he explains.

“What truth?” Gran-Gran asks.

Sokka, Katara, and Zuko share a glance, nod before standing side by side. “This one.” they clasp hands and concentrate, just like Kyoshi said.

Kanna is confused on what they're doing, when she is startled by all three of their eyes glowing a light blue. Quickly, stories of the Avatar State rush through her head, and to say she is surprised would be a miss-speak. Soon the glowing fades and the three look at her.

“The four of us, along with someone in the Earth Kingdom, are the Avatar.” Katara says, voice strong. “We each carry a piece of the Avatar soul due to our bloodlines which connect each of us to one of the past four Avatars.”

Kanna's eyes widen, she had tried to forget that knowledge after she left the north. It meant nothing to her once she settled in the south.

“We need to learn the elements, and to conquer our spiritual side, in order to stop this war.” Sokka says, braver than anything he had ever said before. “We need to go to the North Pole so Katara can learn waterbending, then we will work on our other aspects as we go along.”

“I know you're fearful.” the prince says softly. “I know that my nation has taken much from you, and I can never apologize enough for what they did, but I promise you, I will make sure your grandchildren survive this war so they can return to you. No more families should be torn apart by this war. The Fire Lord will not stop until the world is under his heel. This war needs to end.”

Looking at their faces, Kanna could see their determination, she knew.

“I do not want to hear any news about any of you dying. Do you hear me?” she says sternly.

Sokka and Katara immediately give her hugs and they rush out of the tent to go pack. Leaving Zuko with the elder woman.

“I meant what I said.” he tells her. “I am sorry for everything you've lost. I just want to make sure that no one else loses what you did ever again.”

Without warning, Kanna stomps over to the boy and pulls him into a fierce hug. Zuko is shocked and not sure what to do, but he slowly wraps his arms around her.

“Make sure you bring them back. Alive.” she says quietly.

“I promise you, I intend to do nothing else.”

The two leave the tent to find Sokka and Katara holding packs over their shoulders. In the distance, Aang and the soldiers are coming along with Appa in tow.

“You had better say your goodbyes.” Zuko says, turning to the siblings. “Who knows when you're going to come back.”

The two turns towards the tribe and began saying goodbye to the people and children. Kanna told the ones who were upset that she would explain later. The group then walked towards the small metal boat, Aang having Appa follow via swimming in the water. The soldiers helped the three youngest teens into the boat, still confused on why the Water Tribe teens were coming, before following their captain as he flung himself onto the small craft. As soon as the boat got moving, Zuko turned towards his soldiers.

“Jee, Mitsuko. Meet our newest travel companions. Aang; the Avatar, Sokka; a Water Tribe warrior, and Katara; a waterbender.” he turned towards the teens. “These are two members of my crew. Lieutenant Jee, and one of my marines, Mitsuko.”

“Mitsuko doesn't sound male.” Sokka states, confused.

“Maybe,” Mitsuko removes her face plate. “that's because I'm not a male.”

“You're a woman!” Sokka and Katara cry.

“Excuse you, I am a marine!” she tells them hotly.

“In the Fire Nation, men and women are able to fight.” Zuko explains.

“But, then who takes care of the kids?” Katara asks.

“If there is no one else to care for them, like an aunt, uncle, grandparent, etc. then the parents can send just one of them out to fight while the other stays to take care of the kids. More often it will be the male, but firebenders are drafted first and foremost.” the prince elaborates. “In the Fire Nation, everyone is taught how to defend themselves, whether they go to war or not.”

“Why?” Sokka asks, genuinely curious. It would help a lot more if more women in the tribe learned how to fight.

“Because if the enemy gets past the husband, then the mother must be able to protect her cubs.” Mitsuko says softly.

Meanwhile, Jee is whispering into Zuko's ear. “What in Agni's name are you doing? Why are we taking them with us?”

“I'll explain when they're not in hearing distance.” he tells him strongly.

As they get closer to the large metal boat, Aang tries to get Appa to crawl into the space first, but the bison refuses. Zuko thinks for a moment before getting an idea.

“We can use the loading plank. It will take awhile, but it will allow us to get him on the deck.” he suggests. “Are you sure he can't fly?”

“We were stuck in a block of ice for one-hundred years, he needs time to get his bearings back. He should be flying in no time.” Aang explains.

Jee and Mitsuko look at him with eyes wide.

Jee pinches his nose. “I'm not gonna ask.”

xXx

After a lot of finagling, they finally got Appa on the deck. Zuko was leading the teens down to their rooms for the travel. He set them up in next door rooms, with Sokka and Aang sharing. Their rooms were close enough to the deck where they could get away with ease. Once they were settled in their rooms, Zuko called the entire crew down to the mess hall.

“Now listen up. This is very important.” Zuko called out to the crew, his uncle gazing at him in uncertainty. “That bald headed boy with tattoos is the Avatar.”

That sends the hall into whispers.

“The other two are his friends. The first thing to know, is that the Avatar has not mastered the elements, which is why I did not instigate a fight with him.” a confused murmur rose through the crowd. “Instead, I used his nativity of the war to convince him to come with us, that my father, our Fire Lord, wishes to see him. I told him that he wants to end the war, and he might be able to do that with the Avatar's help. The other two are Sokka and Katara, they are the children of the chief of the Southern Water Tribe. The girl, Katara, is also a waterbender. I told them that I can take them to their sister tribe so she can learn her sacred art. As you can tell, these are lies.” the crew chuckled. “I can use the Avatar's trusting nature to bring him in quietly to my father. As for the Water Tribe teens, we can use them as hostages to force the men of the tribe who are fighting in the war to surrender if their chief ever wants to see his children again.”

Several of the crew members cheered for their captain, while others just remained quiet, though they looked moderately happy. His uncle, predictably, did not look pleased.

“I brought you all here to tell you to keep your mouths sealed. If we can keep them believing these lies, we'll have them in the Fire Nation and in chains before they can realize the truth. This includes being courteous to them as well. We do not need them to get suspicious with your behavior. Now return to your duties.” with that, Zuko left the mess hall.

His uncle quickly followed him. “Prince Zuko, surely you are not using deception to bring the Avatar in?” he questions.

“I will not beat down a child, uncle.” Zuko says sternly. “He is physically twelve years old and only has the knowledge of airbending. He is currently no threat. Once we have him in decent holdings, then we will not have to worry about him even when he goes into the Avatar State.”

“And capturing the chief's children?” his uncle persists.

“A great way to make the Southern Water Tribe cease to be a problem, I would think.” Zuko insisted. “I will not speak on this matter anymore, uncle.” he glares at the old man. “Don't even think of speaking the truth to them.”

“I would not wish to get in the way of your return home, Prince Zuko.” Iroh says bowing his head.

Zuko nods as he walks off, leaving Iroh to sigh in disappointment. Once Zuko walked into the hall with the others rooms, he sees Sokka and Aang opening their door.

“Did you get it done?” he asks quietly.

“All ready and loaded, we just need to wait for the right moment for evacuation.” Sokka gives him a thumbs up.

“At lunchtime I'll bring my stuff down so we can load that onto the saddle as well.” Zuko tells them. “Now quickly, get back in your rooms. They'll get suspicious if you're roaming around while none of them are at their stations. Wait for a bit until you can hear some noise, then you can leave. They're under orders to be polite, so try and do the same so as not to test their patience.”

The two boys nod and they quickly go back to their room. Zuko then goes to his own room and starts packing everything important. Scrolls, books, money he smuggled from the monthly money deposit from his father, at least he's good for something. He grabs a few sheets of paper and some ink and a brush after hiding his pack from immediate sight and heads back to the boy's room.

“Hey.” he says quietly opening the door.

The boys, and Katara, are sitting on the floor as they look up at him. Zuko quietly closes the door behind him and sets down the paper, brush and ink.

“We'll need this to make that note to leave behind once we ditch.” he says, pushing them over to Sokka, who takes them and sets them aside.

“Hey... Zuko?” Aang asks.

“What is it?” he asks looking at the monk.

“We were wondering...” he starts, looking over at the others. “Why exactly do you have to bring me to the Fire Nation?”

“I'm not going to, but I get your question...” Zuko wraps his arms around his legs and rests his chin on his knees.

“You don't have to.” Katara says.

Zuko shakes his head. “I need to.” he takes a deep breath. “Five years ago, my cousin, Lu Ten, died at the battle of Ba Sing Se. Because of that, my uncle pulled his troops from the city, even though they finally broke through the outer wall. Uncle was heartbroken. Then, my father made a suggestion to Fire Lord Azulon that changed everything. He requested from grandfather that he be made heir to the throne instead of his brother, because Lu Ten was uncle's only child, and his wife, Ilah died in childbirth, and uncle had no intentions of marrying again. He said that he had two children opposed to his brother's zero now, and asked for the throne. My grandfather was not pleased. My uncle was his favorite, and Ozai was asking him to take away his birthright. He told my father that his punishment was only beginning. I wasn't actually there when he told my father his punishment, but Azulon had said that his punishment would be to know the pain which my uncle faced first hand.”

“He didn't....” Sokka shakes his head.

“He did. He told my father that he had to kill me so he would understand his brother's pain. I don't know exactly what happened, but that night, I got a visit from my mother who said that everything she had done was to protect me and to never forget who I was. The next morning, grandfather was dead, mother was gone, and my father was announced the next Fire Lord. For two years I suffered at the hands of both my father, who never saw me as anything more than a failure, and my younger sister, who was better than me at everything firebending, and was my father's preferred heir.” Zuko buries his face in his arms.

Katara scooches over and wraps her arms around him in a hug. “We lost our mother too.”

“That's horrible.” Aang says.

“It gets worse.” Zuko says. “Azula was what my father had always wanted in his heir, ruthless, cold, clever, and a prodigy at firebending since she was four. I was everything he hated, soft, emotional, weak, and late in my firebending as I started when I was six instead of the average five. I could never catch up to my sister, who excelled at everything she tried. When I started working with weapons, my father just saw it as another weakness of mine since no self-respecting firebender uses weapons when they have their superior bending.”

“I really hope I don't end up like that.” Sokka says. “I like my weapons, thank you very much.” he says, hugging his boomerang.

Zuko smiles, then frowns again. “Everything changed three years ago. When I went to a war meeting that I wasn't even supposed to be at. Uncle was the reason I was let in, on the condition I kept silent. During the meeting, one of the generals proposed a plan to sacrifice a battalion of new recruits, completely full of non-benders. They would be a distraction for an earthbending battalion while a second group, full of firebenders, would attack them from the rear.” the other three gasp. “I couldn't keep silent. Here they were, willingly sacrificing the lives of the soldiers who love our nation and defend it at the cost of their lives while these generals sit in their fancy tents in the camps. I spoke out, saying the plan was ridiculous, that we couldn't do that to our people. Needless to say, the Fire Lord was not pleased. By speaking out against the plan, I disrespected the general, and was told I would be required to fight in an Agni Kai.”

“A what?” Katara wonders.

“A firebending duel. Whoever deals the blow that the opponent can't get up from wins.”

“You had to duel the general?” Sokka clarifies.

“That's what I thought, so I had accepted the challenge. But what I didn't know was that even though I had disrespected the general by speaking out against his plan, by speaking out in the Fire Lord's war room, it was the Fire Lord that I had disrespected.”

“No...” Sokka, Katara, and Aang looked on in horror.

“I had to duel my own father.” he said quietly. “Once I saw who I was against, I refused to fight. Calling myself his loyal son, apologizing for speaking out of turn, saying I was only thinking of our nation, anything to get the nightmare to end. He only continued to pressure me to fight him, and when I continued to refuse, he told me that I would learn respect, and suffering will be my teacher.”

By now the three of them had eyes full of tears, ready to fall.

“He reached out his hand and cupped my cheek, and for a moment, I thought that was it.”

They were a quiet as could be.

“Then he lit my face on fire.”

Tears fell, sobs ripped from throats, and three pairs of arms wrapped themselves tightly around Zuko's body. The four of them stayed there, just sitting on the floor, curled around the eldest teen like a blanket. After a few minutes of silence, Sokka spoke up.

“He's a terrible father, and you should no longer think of him as one. He doesn't deserve you.”

Katara's shoulders were shaking. “We'll learn the elements, and then take him down.”

“Then he'll see just how wrong he was to throw you away.” Aang says quietly.

Zuko nods. “Yeah, then we'll save the world.”

They stayed like that until lunchtime.

 

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Lex_Perseph0ne is my beta reader and they are awesome!
> 
> Comments and flames welcomed!
> 
> Comments will be read and loved  
> Flames will be read and ignored
> 
> Don't like what I'm writing? Then pick another story to read.
> 
> Uploaded (Ao3): 11/15/2018  
> Uploaded (Fanfiction.net): 11/11/2018


	3. Evasive Maneuvers!

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Disclaimer: I do not own canon Avatar: The Last Airbender, but this AU of it is my creation, this AU belongs to no one by Lex_Perseph0ne and myself. If I see anyone trying to claim otherwise, I will come after you, and I will make you regret it.

* * *

At lunchtime, most of the crew was down in the mess hall filling their stomachs. The only ones still onduty was the helmsman, two men near the boiler room, a man on patrol around the lower decks of the boat, and an engineer who was finishing up his triple check of the small steam boat used earlier. Just as Zuko told them, the crew members were being polite to them. In fact, it was rather hard to tell who was being honest, if any of them were, and the ones who were faking. If they hadn't been informed ahead of time, they would have honestly believed the crew's act. Sokka, Katara and Aang are currently lost trying to find the mess hall, but the large ship left them lost.

“Man, I wish we had a map, this place is huge!” Sokka says under his breath.

“No kidding.” Katara agrees. “This place makes Dad's ships look like toys.”

“You kids alright?” a voice asks from behind.The three young teens turn around to see a standard soldier leaning against the wall of the hallway.

“Yeah, we're kind of looking for the... 'mess hall' I think it was called?” Katara says, uncertain.

“Oh yeah, the mess hall. It's where all our food for breakfast, lunch and dinner get served. We also have small snacks set out from time to time by the cook.” the soldier walks ahead of them and gestures for them to follow. “Come on, I'll take you. I'm on my way there anyways.”

The three let out grateful noises and quickly follow the man.

“So, how exactly do you guys get a metal ship to float?” Sokka asks, trying to break the ice. “I mean, we don't really have this stuff back at home. Metal and cold, not a good idea. Besides, doesn't metal sink?” he rubs his head.

“Yeah it does, however if you want the answer, that's something you should ask one of our engineers. They'd know how that works better than I would.” the guy chuckles.

“This is a rather big ship.” Katara comments, reiterating Sokka's earlier comment.

“Actually, it's really not.” the guy claims.

“What?” the three ask in shock.

“Yeah, actually? This ship is one of the smaller editions, not to mention way outdated. Even three years ago, when our captain was first issued the ship, it was rather old-fashioned.” he shrugs. “The newer models are much nicer and way bigger.”

“You mean... this ship,” Sokka gestures with his hand to the metal walls around them. “is small?!”

“By Fire Nation standards? Yeah. You should see the ones Admirals and Commanders get issued.” he smiles.

“I think I prefer our nice, small, simple, wooden boats, thank you.” Sokka says softly. “Why can't you guys think like that?”

“Um, wood? Firebending? Kind of self-explanatory.” the guy says, looking at him with a raised eyebrow. “It would be even worse for trying to train recruits on deck if you have to constantly worry about putting out fires on your mode of transportation.” he gave a belly laugh.

The two Water Tribe and Air Nomad gave a shiver when they thought about having to worry about burning the thing that kept them from drowning. Soon, they were all in the mess hall. Sokka immediately dashed for the food table, Katara and Aang following at a much slower pace. The cook seemed rather enthused about Sokka's attitude towards trying Fire Nation food. The kid was just so excited, seeing his sister help the Avatar find non-meat food, the cook helps them find as well. The happy faces of the three teens makes some of the softer hearted men want to pull out and bail on the plan, but this would allow them to go home after three years. Letters were great and all, but you couldn't kiss your wife or hug your kids through one. As the three found a place to sit, they are soon joined by an older man with graying hair. His body is shorter and rounder compared to the other men, not to mention he seems to hold an air of importance to him. The other men seem to give a nod of respect to the man as they pass by.

“Good day to you three.” the elderly man says. “My name is Iroh, I don't believe my nephew ever gave us your names.” he gives them a closed eye smile.

 **This is Zuko's uncle!** The three thought in unison as they stared at the old man. They quickly controlled their expressions as Iroh opens his eyes.

“My name is Sokka, this is my younger sister, Katara.” Sokka says, pointing themselves out. “And this is Aang, the Avatar, but I guess you knew that already.” Sokka gives a smirk towards the old man.

Iroh seems to take on a grimace look, like he's trying to smile, but thinking of something unpleasant. He gives a short nod. “Indeed, my nephew was sent out three years ago in search of the Avatar in hopes of ending this dreadful war.”

They do not show it, but the three teens could clearly hear how forced those words seem to sound as they left Iroh's mouth. Katara takes the lead, keeping to their act of being naive.

“But Aang hadn't been seen for nearly one-hundred years. How could he ever know he would find him, especially if it turned out that Aang was being hidden or something similar?” she questions.

“My nephew is a very determined young man.” Iroh says. “Once he has decided on something, there is very little that will convince him to do anything else. Though I have to admit, if it had turned out the Avatar was being hidden, I wonder how Prince Zuko would have taken him on. He is not a master in the art of firebending, I'll admit, but simply being determined would not allow him to catch the Avatar long enough to explain his intentions.”

“I think your nephew would have found a way.” Aang says, voice full of honesty. He could begin to understand why Zuko felt guilty about lying to his uncle. “By the way, not to seem rude, but how do you guys have vegetables? I thought the Fire Nation was all about meat?” he shivers on the last word.

“Even if you love something, you eventually get sick of the taste if that is all you have.” Iroh seems to switch gears and gives a full belly laugh. “Even I, who is a very big lover of foods, would get sick of having the same meal every day for three years!” the teens laugh with him.

xXx

On the deck, Zuko is putting his inconspicuous bag and other items he plans to take on Appa's saddle. He was able to figure out how to attach it to the saddle fairly easily by looking at how the others stuff was tied down. He made sure that his more recognizable items, like his Dao, were hidden below all the packs so none of his crew would see them by accident. He had double checked in his room earlier to make sure he had everything he would need, and even made a stop to the money box to take his usual stash from the deposit for the month. All the items that had Fire Nation symbols on them went into his bigger non- descriptive bag so people would assume it belongs to Aang. There was one thing he didn't pack into his bag because he wanted Aang to have it as soon as possible, it might be useful to him.

Once everything was done, he jumps off Appa, makes sure to give the big creature a rub on the nose, and heads back inside, heading down to the mess hall. He comes to a scene of his new secret friends laughing with his uncle, and it makes his heart twist. He really hates lying to him, but he's never really been able to read the older man in his intentions, at least, when he didn't want him to. Zuko grabs some food and sits down at the group. He holds back a wince when he sees his uncle's look of surprise, usually because he never ate in the mess hall with the others. He would always grab his food and leave to his room to eat there.

“Are you three adjusting alright?” he asks in a professional tone. And there is the _look_ from his uncle.

“Can you explain to me how this ship is considered small in the Fire Nation?!” Sokka questions.

“Because a ship issued to a Commander or Admiral are three times this ship in height, and that's only going up to the deck.” Zuko states. “How are you liking it?” he asks.

“It's great!” Aang says, not really needing to fake his tone. “I've never been in a Fire Nation ship before! Kuzon was not allowed to take me there since he wasn't old enough himself!”

“'Kuzon'?” Zuko asks, confused.

“Oh! A hundred years ago I had a friend in the Fire Nation!” Aang explains. “His name was Kuzon! I had a friend in pretty much every nation! Though I never visited the poles much, but the few times I did I had a friend named Qannik.” most of the men, and a few women from what they can see, were blatantly listening in on them.

“What about the Earth Kingdom?” Katara asks.“Oh! I had a friend in Omashu named Bumi!” Aang smiles. Iroh seems to show interest. “The city has these chutes they use as a mailing system. Earthbending sends them up, and gravity brings them down. Bumi though, he had the greatest idea ever to ride the chutes instead! It was so much fun! Bumi always told me I needed to open my brain to the possibilities.”

“He sounds like a wonderful person.” Iroh says, stroking his beard with a smile.

“He was!” Aang smiles, then frowns. “I wish you guys could have met him.”

Iroh looks like he wants to say something, but refrains.Katara then looks at Zuko.

“So where are we going now?” she asks.

We're going to make a stop at Whale Tail Island to restock on supplies. We don't have nearly enough to just head straight to the Fire Nation or the North Pole.”

“Does that place have grass? I want to make sure there's something for Appa to eat.” Aang puts in.

“There's plenty for him to eat there.” Zuko tells him.

“How long until we get there?” Sokka asks.

“Sometime tomorrow I would think.” Iroh states. “I should warn you, it might be difficult to sleep on a metal ship, noises travel well.”

“I wouldn't worry, my brother sleeps like a log.” Katara giggles. “And I think I'm tired enough to sleep through the night.”

“I can fall asleep pretty much anywhere.” Aang adds on.

“Very well.” Iroh strokes his beard. “Now, do any of you know how to play Pai Sho?”

xXx

It was dawn, and Zuko was already awake, just as every firebender was. His guests were still sleeping downstairs in their rooms. It was entertaining to see his crew be confused at someone sleeping in past noon, as in the Fire Nation, people who lived with one would end up adapting to their schedule and wake when they do. It was funny to see his uncle explaining that the other nations are not fire oriented or live with someone who is, therefore, do not feel the sun as it rises. Still, guests or no guests, Zuko still had to do his morning training. It was weird to think about how this might be his last training session with his uncle, as by this time tomorrow, he was hoping to be plenty far away. Since he wanted to make his uncle proud, for what might be the last time, he eases up on making himself look ridiculous while training. He does not make as many mistakes as he would normal do on purpose, and he works more towards his breathing, making it seem like he took his uncle's advice from yesterday about the breath and not the muscle. To say the least, his uncle was impressed with his 'improvement', even going so far as to congratulate him on taking his advice. It torn Zuko between feeling happy or guilty. He wants his last look at his true father figure to be a smiling one, but knowing the kind of look his leaving will put on his face tears at his heart. But he can't back out now, not with everything he learned yesterday.

He looks out to the sea to see their destination approaching.

xXx

“Hey, Aang!” the bald monk turns around to see Zuko walking up to him.

“Yeah?” he asks.

“Here, I think you could use this.” the older teen drops something into his hand and Aang gasps.

“This is..?!” he holds it up for inspection.

Zuko rubs his head. “I don't know if it's the real thing or if it still works after all this time but-.”

“This is 100% real and I'm willing to bet it still works like a charm!” he gives the scarred teen a big hug. “Thank you!”

Zuko can only blush. “It's nothing. I just found it at a market one time while my uncle was on a shopping spree. I'd taken to collecting as much airbending memorabilia as I could in case it could be useful. It's all packed away in the saddle.” he says the last bits under his breath. “Make sure you keep that on you and hidden.”

“I will!” Aang nods as he tucks the item into his shirt.

“So how is this working?” Sokka asks as he and Katara approach.“You have the note?” Zuko asks. Sokka nods. “Alright, many of the men, including uncle, will be leaving the ship to see if they want anything besides getting our usual supplies. One of them will be coming with us, as that's just normal policy. One we can use to our advantage. After a while, Katara will make the first move, quickly followed by Sokka and Aang making the second strike. Then Sokka will drop the note and we'll hightail it to the woods where Aang has already sent Appa.”

The four teens nod before Sokka puts his hand in the middle. “Alright, Team Avatar is a go!” he shout- whispers.

“We are not calling ourselves that.” Zuko says.

“Just put your hands in the middle!”

They do so, now the Fire Nation teen, the Water Tribe siblings, and the last Air Nomad have their hands stacked in the middle. They look at each other, smile and raise their hands in the air.

“Let's go!”

xXx

As the people depart from the ship, Sokka and Katara can't help but look at their surroundings. Never have they seen such green beauty! Aang jumps in front of them, pointing out random things making them smile. Zuko and his man are in the back of the group, following them calmly. The group of five walk through the market, looking at this and that, even buying a few treats to try. Aang even goes out of his way to buy some veggies that he is rather fond of, ignoring the shivers that go through the others at eating a raw vegetable.

After a couple of minutes, they stop by a stall on the edge of the market, Zuko holding up a piece for his soldier to look at. He lets the soldier take the piece to closer examine as he cups his chin and folds his arm under the other. He subtly makings a snipping motion with his index and middle finger, not taking his eyes off the soldier or the object he held. Suddenly, the soldier's head snaps forward as it is hit with a hard object. He jumps into stance, but feels his arms tugged behind him, positioned in a way that would cause him to burn his own arms if he tries firebending.

“You think we didn't figure out your plan!?” he hears Sokka yell, more so at the soldier Katara and Aang are currently tying up. Thank god he wasn't a firebender. “We aren't going to be your prisoners! But you are going to be ours!” he feels himself tugged along as he sees a note drop near the soldier's head.

Anyone that gets too close is backed away by Katara who is wielding Sokka's machete. Aang's staff, when held right, looks rather threatening as well. The four of them keep running until they hit the tree line and are hidden from sight. Quickly, his arms are dropped and Zuko stretches them out.

“Sorry about that.” Sokka apologies, looking at me as he takes his machete back from his sister.

“We need this to look as real as possible.” he looks at Aang. “Now would be a good time to try out that gift I gave you.”

Aang smiles and reaches into his shirt and pulls out a whistle, blowing rather hard into it. It was rarely found luck on Zuko's part that he found that when he did. He turns back towards the town and gestures to move farther into the woods. They come across a clearing and look over at the sound of a gruff groan. They all smile at the fluffy visage that is Appa and quickly hop on.

“Okay buddy, third times the charm. Yip-yip!” he flicks the reins, the other three holding their breath, if this doesn't work, they're so toast.

Suddenly, Appa groans and lifts his tail up before slapping it to the ground. At contact with the ground, his entire body rises into the air, the ground getting smaller and smaller. The four teens cheer.

“He's flying! He's really flying! This is actually-” Sokka looks over at Katara, who is looking smug. “I mean, big deal, he's flying.”

As they fly over the town, they look down at the market, where they can see a stir in the crowd. A few fireballs shoot up towards them, but Appa dodges them with ease.Zuko hunches over in the middle of the saddle as he hears a fading cry of “ _Zuko!_ ”, his heart clenching as he wipes away a tear. The other three converge on him in a hug in the middle of the saddle as the island gets farther and farther away. After a bit Zuko removes himself from the hug and reaches into his pack for his compass. Sokka pulls out a map as he and Zuko look it over.

“We need to head that way.” he points in one direction. “This way we can make a turnabout and head through the Patola Mountain Range.” Sokka nods in agreement.

“Do you guys..” Aang speaks up. “Do you guys think we could make a quick stop by the Southern Air Temple?” he asks.

Zuko thinks. “I don't think you would want to see what's there.” as Aang's head droops, Zuko relents. “But maybe we can do a flyby? So you can at least see it?” he tries.

Aang's expression rises a bit. “Thank you.”

The group is silent, looking at the water below or the clouds above.

xXx

Iroh is rushing his men back onto the ship, having most of them just set the supplies on the deck, and immediately set the ship on course to follow them. Logically, Iroh knows they won't be able to keep up, but this is _his nephew_ , and he will never abandon him. He looks down at the note that was left with the soldier that had accompanied his nephew.

_ Iroh,  _

_ We know about the trap your nephew laid. We aren't going to let the Fire Lord have the Avatar! We're going to the Earth Kingdom to find teachers for Aang. We've taken your nephew, Zuko, as our hostage. If you want him back, then you'll back off! _

“My dear nephew, I will get you back.” he vows under his breath.

As they sail towards where the now flying sky bison had faded into the sky, they are approached by a larger ship. Iroh knows this will not end well once he sees them flag them down. His worries are reaffirmed when he sees that it is Zhao's ship that has flagged them down.

No matter how he spins this, Zhao _will_ find out about the newly found Avatar. Even if he has to squeeze it out of the crew mates.

“General Iroh.” Zhao greets as he steps on the ship. “I haven't seen you for some time. I expected to be greeted by the face of our banished prince rather than just you, I'm rather disappointed I couldn't greet the son of our great Fire Lord.” he gives a smile fit for evil.

“I'm retired, Captain Zhao. And my nephew is not here at the moment.” Iroh states.

“It's _Commander_ now. The elder brother of our great Fire Lord is welcome in my harbor anytime.” Zhao looks at the older man. “Join me for a quick drink on my ship? I still have a box of Ginseng tea in my cabin.”

Iroh wants to refuse, he _desperately_ wants to. But he would rather not have Zhao on his tail while searching for his nephew. Plus, he needs some tea to calm himself down. Besides, he doubts Zhao would let him leave if he did not get to see Prince Zuko, and if he refuses to let him, Zhao will get noisy.

“I would love some.”

The Commander leads him into his cabin where he has one of his servants prepare a pot of tea. Once he has a cup, Iroh takes a generous sip, his mind split between his nephew and the man in front of him. He can't even be bothered enough to listen to what the man is saying.

“.. And by the year's end, the Earth Kingdom capital will be under our rule.” he looks back at the General. “Is everything alright, General Iroh?”

Iroh sets his cup down and lets the Commander refill it. “I am thinking of my nephew. I am worried for him.” he says, evading how he is also currently missing.

“Is there something wrong with our illustrious prince?” Zhao asks in faux worry.

“I am worried that he is letting his quest get in the way of everything else. Yes, the mission from my brother is important to him, but I believe he slowly destroying himself from the inside.” Iroh stands up and gives a bow to the other. “I must be going. I have a long journey ahead of me. My nephew is not an easy man to handle.”

He goes to leave the room when a soldier comes in, blocking his way.

“Commander Zhao, we interrogated the crew as ordered. It seems that Prince Zuko caught the Avatar as well as the children of the Southern Water Tribe chief using deception. The Avatar is not fully trained, only in air is he a master. Prince Zuko said that they were trapping the children with lies, saying he was going to bring the Avatar to his father so he could help 'end' the war, but actual lead him right to his hands. He also planned to use the Water Tribe children as incentive to get the Southern Water Tribe men to cease fighting if their chief ever wanted to see his children again. Just on the island, the three got the jump on Prince Zuko and took him hostage. The ship is currently in pursuit of the Avatar's sky bison.”

Zhao grins as he walks over to Iroh. “Now, what exactly, happened to our dear prince?”

xXx

They came to land about an hour ago, and had fled from Zuko's crew several hours ago. Aang keeps telling them that they are getting closer to the Air Temple, but the others are tired and are edging closer to the side of 'annoyed'.

“Look! There it is!” Aang cries out.

Suddenly Sokka, Zuko, and Katara can't move fast enough. They lean on the edge of the saddle as they look out towards the massive temple. Zuko, having been here once before, is suddenly glad once again that he only promised a flyby instead of actually going in. Aang steers Appa around to look around the building while pointing things out.

“-that's where my friends and I would play airball. Over there-” he points to another area. “-is where the bison would sleep. Up there-” he points to an upper area as he guides Appa to rise up to get a better look. “-is where Monk Gyatso would have me help him bake fruit pies that we would launch at the elder monks...” Aang trails off as his eyes start to water. “I can't believe that they're all gone.”

Katara reaches over and pulls Aang into the saddle where she and the others give him a big huge.

“I know you want to see it, Aang.” Zuko tells him. “But that is not something you should see right now... but I promise you.” he looks at the monk in the eyes. “Once we win the war, we'll come to each temple and help you give each of them a proper burial.”

Aang nods and wipes at his eyes, smiling a bit.

“Okay, now that we've gotten the sad part out of the way-” Sokka is cut off as something tackles his face. “Ack! Get it off! Get it off!” he tries yanking the thing off, but it doesn't work.

“Hey! I know what that is!” Aang reaches over and gently pulls the white furry creature off of Sokka's face.

Turns out, is a flying lemur. As rarely seen as Appa.

“You're a lemur!” Aang cries.

“More like dinner.” Sokka says, drooling.

“No way!” Aang turns away so Sokka can't get to the little thing. “We already have plenty of food in our packs!”

“Sokka! Knock it off” Katara smacks her brother. “We're not going to eat a tiny thing like him!”

“Besides,” Zuko adds in. “something like a lemur doesn't have much meat to begin with. You wouldn't have any luck there, Sokka. Lemurs have to have as little meat on their bones as possible to be able to fly. If they're too heavy, all they can do is glide downward.”

Sokka grumbles as he crosses his arms in a pout.

Aang looks at the furry creature with a smile. “I think I'll call you... Momo!”

xXx

“So let me get this straight.” Zhao states as he looks at the older man. “Our prince found the Avatar and two of his friends, got him on the boat fight free, and it went smoothly until a member of his crew blabbed and they found out the plan, and the decided to kidnap Prince Zuko?”

Iroh can only nod. “That is correct.”

“So our prince was bested by a Water Tribe barbarian, a waterbending child, and an untrained Avatar.” Zhao grins. “He's even more pathetic than I originally thought!”

Iroh looks up at him. “My nephew underestimated them once! He won't do so again!”

“No, he won't.” Zhao looks at the General. “Because he won't be getting a second chance. I will be taking over the search for the Avatar. Once the Prince is in my custody, I will make sure he is returned to you. You can decide where to put him then, after all, he's not going home with the Avatar in my custody.” he turns towards one of his guards. “Escort him back to his ship, I'm sure my men have gathered all they can from the ship about the Avatar.”

Iroh is only able to contain his anger through years of experience, but without them, he would have sliced Zhao in half with a blade of fire.

xXx

The group found an area where Appa could rest, since the bison has been working 100 year old stiff muscles. Katara suggested that they start working on their bending while they have the time. At first Aang wanted to teach them all airbending, but Zuko felt that it would be better if they split up the training. It would allow he to put the scrolls he gathered to good use.

So now, Aang was training Zuko in airbending while Katara was training her brother in waterbending by the nearby stream. And it was not going all that well.

“Agh!” Sokka cries out again as he is splashed once again as the small trail of water he managed to get over his head falls back into the stream.

Katara holds back a giggle as she stands next to him. “Try to feel for the water first, then once you have a good feel for it, try lifting it up.” she suggests.

“Well why don't you give it a try?!” Sokka snaps.

Katara takes a stance next to Sokka as she raises her arms and a steady stream of water follows her movements. Sokka grumbles as he tries to mimic her stance. Katara lets the water fall back into the stream as she helps correct her brother's form. She has to look back at the waterbending scroll Zuko gave her to make sure he was doing it right.

Meanwhile, Aang was beginning to realize that being a teacher would have worth waiting for. Zuko is struggling a bit, since the light, gentle movement of air is vastly different than that of the quick, harsh movement of fire.

“Zuko, you're too tense.” Aang tells him. “Your muscles are too tense and stiff, that makes it difficult to be free flowing.”

“I don't know how to _not_ be tense.” Zuko says as he grits his teeth.

Aang thinks for a moment. “Well... what do you do when you use waterbending moves? You said you can do those better.”

Zuko thinks. “I think of forest rivers and streams, the calm flows of water. One of the easiest ways I studied waterbending since I didn't have easy access to them was by studying the element itself. Water on land is more often calm, while the ocean rages in a storm.”

Aang smiles. “Well, think of a breeze! It moves through the smallest holes and around obstacles.”

Zuko shrugs. “Never really seen a breeze. Harsh winds on sea, maybe. And it's hard to feel a breeze on a ship when there is nothing for it to move around.”

Aang's smile drops for a moment before it returns. He waves his hands around to create an air channel around his body. Zuko's mouth falls open as he watches him. Aang suddenly jumps at an area with tall rocks and moves his body through them with ease. Once he returns through them he steps next to Zuko and smiles at him.

“Does that help?” he asks.

Zuko furrows his eyebrow. “I can try.”

He walks over to the rocks and took an opening stance he recalls from one of the few airbending scrolls he found. He closes his eyes and thinks back to when Aang was doing this. He takes a deep breath before walking in. Without opening his eyes, he flows through the rocks and avoids all of them. Once he stops moving, he hears a clapping and turns around to see Aang looking at him with a big smile and clapping his hands.

“That was amazing! You even did it with your eyes closed!” Aang cries. “I guess imagining the element you're trying to bend really helps with working with it!”

Zuko gives a awkward laugh. “I guess so.”

Aang is pretty much bouncing in place. “Let's go see how Katara and Sokka are doing!”

“Really?” Zuko questions as Aang grabs his hand and starts walking towards the stream. “We've only done this one thing. I don't think they've gotten very far.”

“Still, it's a good idea to check in on them.” Aang gives him a nervous smile. “You know.. with Sokka having to take lessons from Katara and all.”

Zuko sweat dropped at that. “That's true.”

Sokka having to take orders from Katara is a disaster waiting to happen. The two of them make their way over to the stream, and are surprised to see that the two are not fighting, but getting along. They are both holding our their hands which are holding two balls of water over the stream. They both pull back their left arm and pull the balls into ribbons that swirls around their bodies like a dance before they send them back into the larger body of water. Stunned, Zuko and Aang begin to clap, snapping the two of them out of their training trance.

“That was impressive.” Zuko compliments. “Especially since you don't have any prior training, isn't that what you said, Katara?” he asks her.Katara blushes and nods.

“Yeah, I just made up my own moves. The scroll really helps, and Sokka is picking this up better than I thought he would.”

“Hey, I'm right here.” he tells her. “So how did airbending training go?” he asks Zuko.

Zuko shrugs. “I was pretty bad in the beginning, but after a helpful tip from Aang, I think I've found my way to learn bending.”

“Really?” Sokka perks up in interest. “What's that?”

“Turns out I learn better when I visualize the element I'm working with. When I worked with waterbending katas, I would visualize different bodies of water depending on how I wanted to move. Rivers and streams for softness, and stormy oceans for swiftness.” he tells the younger male. “Aang gave me a visual of a soft breeze and it helped. Granted, I didn't actually bend but I got the movements down. So, you got farther than I did.”

Sokka cups his chin. “Visualize the element, huh? I should try that out.”

Zuko shrugs. “Maybe, it might not work for you like it does me. Just saying.”

Sokka shrugs him off. Katara runs over to Zuko with a smile.

“Can you show me your airbending moves? Aang said you were amazing!”

Zuko sends a glare at the airbender, who 'meep's and looks away. He lets out a sigh before he nods. Katara lets out a excited noise before she grabs Sokka's arm and pulls him a bit away so he had room. Aang joins them and makes a 'go on' gesture to him.

Zuko takes a deep breath before he closes his eyes again and starts moving. He does not have anything to move around this time, but visualizes the ones he avoided before. Suddenly, he feels an _actual_ object inhibiting his path and he just _**moves** _, he feels a bit of wind kick up, but continues on. Once he stops moving, he opens his eyes and looks over at his friends, who are staring at him with wide eyes.

“What's wrong?” he asks, confused.

Sokka points over to his left, and Zuko turns his eyes. His eyes nearly pop out of their sockets when he sees a dead tree trunk that is probably taller than himself leaning really far over. It is only hanging on by a few dead roots while the others are up in the air instead of in the earth. It will probably fall to the ground during the next storm.

“I... did that?” he asks, in shock.

“Yep.” Sokka confirms.

“You were just... heading for it.” Aang explains. “I was about to call out to you, but then you side stepped it and jutted your left hand out and... sent out a huge gust of air.”

“How did you not hear when the roots were pulled from the ground?” Katara asks in amazement.He struggles to come up with a valid answer.

“I... just didn't.”

Sokka claps his hands, startling the others. “Well, I think Aang should get some waterbending practice now that he's done with Zuko. Then we can get moving. We can still get a couple of miles before we have to camp for the night.”

Aang looks at Zuko. “What about firebending?” he asks.

Zuko holds up his hands in a 'no way' gesture and quickly shakes his head. “Avatars are suppose to learn the elements in order of the cycle. Water, Earth, Fire, Air. Me learning airbending is natural, you waterbending, also natural. You can't just jump from air to fire, it doesn't work like that. There is a reason Avatars learn the order they do.”

“But-.” Aang tries.

“No.” Zuko crosses his arms. “I'll explain why later, but for now? No.”

“Come on, Aang.” Katara pulls Aang over to the stream. “Let's try out some basics.”

Zuko and Sokka walk over to where Appa is laying and rest on his legs. Sokka looks over at Zuko.

“Why can't Aang learn firebending now?” he asks.

“Because, he doesn't have the focus.” he tells him. “As an airbender, he doesn't have the understanding to use a harsh element. Compared to his air, fire is his opposite in personality. Air is light, deflecting, avoiding, gentle. Fire is tense, attacking, straight on, harsh.”

“So... he can't focus because fire is his opposite personality?” Sokka clarifies.

“Yes. Earth may be his opposite in element, but fire is his opposite in nature. It is also his ally.” Zuko tells him.

“Whoa, wait. Ally?” he raises his eyebrows.

“Yes, fire cannot live without air. No air, no fire. It's why fanning a flame usually helps it grow, and why forest fires grow so fast. Because the wind helps them.”

Sokka rolls onto his back looking up at the blue sky. “So, do we have to learn the elements in order like a normal Avatar would or something?”

“It would be best. It's part of the mental progress of becoming the Avatar.” Zuko states. “And between the Avatar Soul's fractured state, we don't need to do anymore damage to Aang's mental health, let alone our own.”

“Katara's not going to be happy with having to wait until we meet our Earth piece.” Sokka says.

“Are you willing to risk her getting hurt because she was impatient?” he asks him.

“No!” he sits up and looks down at him. “This is something we all have to do together and I'm not having her hurt herself when we'll all reach the goal as a team!”

“Then she needs to wait.” Zuko sits up as well. “Besides, she needs to work on her waterbending if she wants to impress the stuck-ups at the North Pole.” he rubs his chin. “I could use some improvement on my firebending as well.”

They hear a loud 'Argh!' come from the stream and look over to see Katara stomping away, while Aang looks over to them with a confused expression. He walks over to them while casting nervous glances over at their only female companion.

“Why is she mad?” he asks them.

“What did you do?” Sokka asks with a raised eyebrow.

“Nothing! I did exactly what she told me to do!” Aang defends himself. “She told me to make a ball of water and I did! Then she told me to twirl it around me like a ribbon dancer, and I did! I don't get why she's mad at me!”

Zuko glances over at the female before he looks back at Aang. “How quickly did you do what she asked?”

“Immediately.” Aang answers.

Zuko groans. “She's jealous.” he tells him.

“Jealous?” Aang parakeet-parrots back to him.

Zuko waves his hand. “She's worked hard to get where she is, Aang. Yet, you did it with ease.”

Sokka pitches in. “She had to work hard to perfect what she knows, and even when I was working with her I had difficulties. You, on the other hand, did what took her years to learn in a matter of moments.”

Aang looks like he's about to cry. He dashes over to Katara and gives her a big hug. He talks to her for a few minutes, it looks like she gets mad again, but it seems that whatever Aang is telling her calms her down. They both walk over smiling.

“We should get going. We have a couple of hours left before sundown.” Aang says as he jumps onto Appa.

The other three climb into the saddle and head off.

xXx

Iroh cannot even begin to explain his irritation at the crew. They sold out their captain, _his nephew!_ Without even a second thought! Lieutenant Jee and Mitsuko being the only ones who kept their mouths shut, and therefore, are exempted from Iroh's ire. Yes, the crew respected Iroh, his nephew? Not so much. The only reason they kept to Prince Zuko's plan was because they wanted to go home. Well, now they're not going to. Because they are coming with him to get his nephew back! He's lost one son to the war, he will not lose a second! He will follow the Avatar's trail and get his nephew back before Zhao does! Then he might be able to shield the other three children from both Zuko's and Zhao's ire.If this goes on for too long, he might have to call in reinforcements. Iroh clutches at a white lotus tile in his hand as he looks at the sunset, signaling the end of day, thinking of his dear nephew. He can only hope that his nephew learns from this experience.

Xxx

“I am sick of learning right now!” Zuko cries to the blue morning skies as he lays down on the floor of the saddle. “I really don't see why I need to learn how a pregnant animal gives birth thank you very much!!” he yells, looking at Katara.

“Thank you!” Sokka cries. “Someone finally said something!”

Katara furrows her brows. “Hey, I'm not the one who brought the conversation this way.”

“This is why I do not talk with anyone in the morning!” Sokka cries. “I have no mouth filter before I've had something to eat!”

“Sokka, you don't have a mouth filter anyways.” Katara shoots back.

“You done with that yet?” Sokka asks, gesturing to the shirt in her hands that has a hole she is currently sewing up.

“Almost.” she replies back irritably.

“Hey, check this out.” Aang says as he takes some marbles from one of his odd pockets and twirls them really fast in a small horizontal circle.

“That's nice, Aang.” Katara tells him, not looking up.

“You're not even looking.” he catches the marbles.

She looks up with a smile. “That's great!” she tells him.

“But I stopped.” he mumbles softly.

“Okay, Aang. You've got to stop distracting the girl while she's doing her sewing.” Sokka says, waving his hand about.

“What does me being a girl have to do with anything, Sokka?” Katara asks, glaring over at her brother.

“It's just nature. Girls are naturally better at sewing while guys are better at hunting.” he replies.

Zuko winces as Katara suddenly smiles and throws the shirt back at her brother. “All done! Look how well I did too!”

Sokka sputters as the shirt hits him in the face. “Hey! I can't wear this while it has a hole in it! Katara please!”

“Sokka, one day you've got to learn that women are just as capable as men.” Zuko tells him. “You saw Mitsuko.”

“I'm still learning!” Sokka cries.

“Don't worry, Sokka!” Aang calls to him. “Where we're going you don't need a shirt!” he points to just ahead of them where an island is making an appearance. “Kyoshi Island!”

He pulls Appa in for a landing by the beach and the four depart from the fluffy creature. The Water Tribe and Fire Nation teens look around before looking back at Aang.

“Don't you think we should keep going?” Sokka asks. “We're trying to put as much ground between us and that Fire Navy ship as possible.”

“But Appa's tired.” Aang says. “Aren't you boy?”

Appa barely reacts to the acknowledgment.

“I _said_ , aren't you boy?”

Appa puts slightly more enthusiasm behind his response the second time by grunting louder and opening up his mouth wide as if he was yawning.

“Oh yeah.” Sokka says sarcastically. “That was _real_ convincing.” then he shrugs. “Eh. Hard to argue with a ten ton mythical monster anyhow.”

Aang looks out at the water. “Hey look!” he points.

The other three look and their jaws drop as an elephant koi jumps out of the water before splashing back in. Aang is quite visibly vibrating in excitement.

“What is that?” Katara asks faintly.

“Elephant koi fish.” Zuko responds.

“That's why I brought us here!” Aang says as he starts to pull off his clothes. “I'm going to ride one. Katara, you've got to watch me!”

Aang runs to the water and jumps right in, leaping back into the air with a shout of “Cold!”. Still watching from the shore, Zuko, Sokka, and Katara exchange glances. Sokka looks to his right at Zuko and his sister while making a circular motion near his left temple with his left hand. Katara rolls her eyes and Zuko facepalms.

Meanwhile Aang is swimming rapidly out towards the koi. He dives under the water and comes back up holding onto the dorsal fin of the elephant koi. Katara smiles, highly impressed by the younger boy. Aang is laughing from his spot on the koi while the fish dives back under the water and surfaces again several times. Katara cheers him on while Sokka crosses his arms, not impressed in the least. Katara looks over at Zuko and Sokka, as if she's waiting for something.

Zuko shakes his head. “Don't expect me to go out there and join him.”

Sokka picks his ear. “And try not to look so impressed, Katara. The fish is doing all the work.”

Katara frowns before she notices something behind them and turns around. “No Appa! You can't eat that!”

Out on the water, Aang looks back at the shore, only to see Katara's back to him. His smile fades, mildly disappointed.

“Aw man.” he pouts.

A dark shadow in the water begins to start chasing the koi fish. Two change directions, but the shadow continues to pursue the third fish. Sokka looks closer at the water and notices the shadow.

“There's something in the water!” he shouts.

Zuko looks out at the water and sees what Sokka does as Katara comes to his side again.

“What's going on?” she asks, sensing the panic in the air.

“Aang's in trouble! He needs to get out of the water, now!” Sokka cries.

The three teenagers start making wild gestures to try and get Aang's attention. They try calling his name, but the airbender is unable to hear their calls due to the wind pressure. Said airbender looks over at them, and merely believes them to be cheering him on. He smiles at them, but is suddenly hurled off the elephant koi as it is pulled under. Aang surfaces from where he landed in the water and gasps for air. A massive dorsal fin rises behind Aang, who notices it and lets out a large cry. Using airbending, he runs across the surface of the water to get away from the large creature. The fin is gaining on him, but Aang makes it to shore, colliding into both Sokka and Zuko.

Katara runs over to where the three came to a halt, worry all over her face. “What was that?” she asks as she looks each of them over for any injuries.

Aang shrugs as he pulls his clothes back on, Zuko rubs his head as he stands up.

Sokka stands up as he looks at the water. “I don't know, and I don't care to find out. Let's hit the road before we run into anything else.”

Suddenly, the group is ambushed by figures clad in green kimonos. One pulls the hood on Katara's parka over her head, blinding her and allowing her attacker to pull her arms back as they quickly tie her up. Aang is distracted as Katara is taken down, which allows for another figure to pull on his collar and pull him back as they tie him up as well. Sokka is pulled backwards, throwing him off balance and giving his attacker time to tie him up. Momo flies around in a frenzy until he is caught by flying right into a bag which is quickly tied shut. Zuko, much more used to surprise attacks, avoids the first attack and throws another over his shoulder. As his friends, tied and blindfolded, are thrown to the ground, he is distracted long enough for his attackers to catch him off guard and immobilize him as well. The figures tie and blindfold him as well as they throw him down to join his friends on the ground.

“Or we could just, you know, stay awhile.” Sokka says, awkwardly.

“You just had to open your big mouth.” Zuko adds. “Didn't you?”

xXx

The group is lead by their mystery attackers, since they did not respond to anything any of them said. The four of them can hear whispers, signifying more people around them. After a bit, their attackers turn them around and they can feel themselves tied to a large pole. Zuko in on the end, Katara to his right, Sokka on her right, and Aang on the other end. The three hear footsteps getting closer to them, until they stop a few meters away.

“You four have some serious explaining to do.” an elderly voice declares.

A female voice joins in. “And if we don't like what we hear, we'll just throw you back into the bay with the Unagi!”

Sokka is tiring of everything right now. “Show yourselves, you cowards!”

If his hands had been free, Zuko would have face palmed.

The four of them feel hands working at their blindfolds before they are removed. They blink to adjust their eyes before their sight focuses. Before them are several women with face paint and green kimonos, the one in the front was wearing an elaborate headdress, signifying she was the leader. Next to them was an elderly man with a graying beard.

“Who are you people? Where are the men who ambushed us?” Sokka asks aggressively.

“Sokka, shut up.” Zuko whispers.

The girl with the headdress steps forward. “There were no me, we ambushed you. We're the warriors of this island. Now, tell us who you are and why you're here!”

Sokka snorts. “Wait, a bunch of _girls_ took us now?”

The leader snaps her hand out to grab Sokka's collar. “'A bunch of girls', huh? I guess the Unagi will be eating well tonight.”

Katara leans forward. “No! Please, don't hurt him! My brother doesn't think before he speaks.”

The leader lets go of Sokka's parka, still looking at him in dismay.

Aang gives a big sigh before he looks up at them. “It's my fault. I'm sorry.” the girl and elder look at him questioningly. “I wanted to ride the elephant koi here, I shouldn't have brought my friends here.”

The man points his finger at them angrily. “How do we know you're not Fire Nation spies?!” he looks directly at Zuko, who looks away. “I wouldn't be surprised, considering you have one of these vermin with you.” he looks back at the other three. “Kyoshi has kept out of the war so far, and we intend to keep it that way!”

Aang brightens up. “Kyoshi? That's right, this place is named after Avatar Kyoshi! I know her!”

The man laughs humorlessly. “'Know her'? Ha! That's not possible.”

He gestures up towards the top of the pole they're tied to, where a faded wooden statue of Kyoshi holding two stretched open fans stood tall and proud. It could stand to be fixed a little.

“Avatar Kyoshi was born here four hundred years ago. She turned this land mass into an island when she separated it from the mainland to keep her people save from the tyranny of Chin the Conqueror. She's been dead for centuries.” he looks back down at the teens. “How could you know her?”

Aang looks at his friends, who look back with a nod, before he looks at the man straight in the eyes, his voice steady. “Because I'm the Avatar.”

The girl doesn't look convinced. “Not possible. The last Avatar was an airbender who disappeared over a hundred years ago!”

 **Not anymore.** The four teens couldn't help but think.

“That's me!” Aang says with a smile.

The old man looks at them angrily before he looks over at the girl. “Suki! Take the impostor and his friends and throw them to the Unagi. And make sure the Fire Nation one is tied up well.”

The girl, Suki, and her other warriors immediately retract their metal fans and start moving threateningly towards them. Sokka and Katara are struggling in their bonds, while Zuko is debates on blowing fire at them. He's a _fire_ bender by natural birth. He's not going to die by water! Katara looks over at Aang with worry.

“Aang! Now would be a good time to do some airbending!” she whispers harshly.

Aang nods before he leans over pushing himself off the ground. He leaves a large dust cloud as he shoots in the air, stretching out his ropes, using one of the outstretched fans of the statue to snap them in half. Now completely free of his bonds, he tumbles elegantly over the statue. Aang lands gently on the ground in front of the surprised crowd, his robes still fluttering in the air. The old man and the warriors stare at him in shock. A lot more people have gather around to see what is going on. Unlike the warriors, the villagers are wearing blue, like the old man.

“It's true.” he states in awe. “You _are_ the Avatar...”

Aang drops his serious face and pulls his marbles from his shawl. “Now look at this!” he does his spinning trick from earlier in the saddle, a big grin on his face.

The old man bows to him. “It is an honor to have you and your friends here, Avatar.”

Aang puts his marbles away before rubbing the back of his bald head. “Yeah, and my friends include him.” he says, pointing back at Zuko. “So I would appreciate it if you didn't tie him up and drown him, please and thank you.”

Down near the docks a little girl is running towards a fisherman. “Hey! Did you hear the news?” she asks him as he picks up a basket of fish. “The Avatar is on Kyoshi Island!”

The man drops his basket in shock. “Wha-huh?!”

.

The fisherman later gives a fishmonger the basket of fish. “The Avatar is on Kyoshi Island.”

The fishmonger stares at him in shock.

.

The fishmonger later sells one of the fish to a servant dressed in red. “Did you hear? I was told the Avatar was on Kyoshi Island.”

The servant looks up in surprise.

.

Later the servant is serving the, now cooked, fish to Commander Zhao. “I heard in the market that the Avatar was at Kyoshi Island.”

Zhao abruptly stands up. “What did you say?” he demands.

“The man I got the fish from today said he was told that the Avatar was on Kyoshi Island.” the servant repeats, hoping he won't be grilled to a crisp.

Zhao turns to one of the guards in the rooms. “Ready the rhinos! I'm not letting the Avatar get away from me!”

xXx

Back on Kyoshi Island, the villagers are bustling about excitedly. One man is on a ladder near Kyoshi's wooden face as it is being repainted. The right side of her face is already done and the previous cracks are not visible anymore. The painter carefully reapplies her left eyebrow with black paint. Another villager is cleaning the back of the statue with a broom. Off to the side of the village, out of the way of any bystanders, is Appa as he is being treated to a grooming session while munching on some hay. In the house next to where Appa is getting groomed, Aang, Katara and Zuko are currently sitting at a long table full of food while Sokka sits off to the side, clearly pouting. A villager places one last dish on the table as Aang and Momo are rather excited by the arrangement before them, while Katara and Zuko both support an uneasy look, though, for different reasons.

Aang throws his hands into the air as he cheers. “Alright!” he grabs two items from different plates and digs in. “Dessert for breakfast!”

Katara pokes on of the desserts in front of her, unsure of its edibility due to never having seen it, or more than half of the buffet in front of her, before. As she picks up the dessert she poked, Aang lets out a groan of satisfaction.

“These people definitely know how to treat the Avatar!” Aang says with a smile as he stuffs his face once more.

Zuko continues to look at the food in front of him, not sure how to feel about eating food prepared by people who were ready to drown him and feed him to a giant sea monster no less than twenty-four hours ago.

“Mmm.” Aang picks up two more desserts before looking over at his friends. “Katara, Zuko. You've got to try this!” he holds both out to the two of them.

Katara puts down the dessert she was holding before taking both treats and handing one to the firebender beside her. “I guess it can't hurt to try one.” she bites into it.

Zuko stares at it for a few seconds before sighing. “I guess they wouldn't risk trying to poison me if you could also be poisoned.” he takes a bite.

Momo creeps across the table and swipes a sweet that Aang just picked up, but he doesn't seem to mind. He grabs another treat while Katara sits up to reach the plate of desserts that Aang had given to her, clearly liking the taste. Aang leans back to look over at Sokka, who is not even drooling in the slightest at the buffet before him. A small furry hand reaches up between Katara and Zuko's leg to grab a sweet from the nearest plate before disappearing back under the table.

“Hey, Sokka?” Aang calls to him. “Eat up.”

Sokka doesn't even look over. “Not hungry.”

Aang's eyes widen and Zuko turns slightly to look at the tan boy. “But you're always hungry!”

Katara sends a glance of amusement towards Aang. “He's just mad that a bunch of girls totally kicked his butt yesterday.”

“They snuck up on me! And aren't you forgetting that they got Zuko too?” Sokka says in his defense.

Katara grins. “And _then_ they kicked your butt.”

Zuko gives Sokka a deadpan look. “And, unlike you, I am not under the impression that girls are incapable of fighting as well as any man.”

Sokka stands up angrily. “Sneak attacks don't count!” he stomps out of the room grumbling under his breath. “Tie me up with rope, will you? I show them...”

The three remaining teens watch him leave.

“That's not going to end well.” Zuko says.

Aang digs back into the food. “What's his deal? We're getting royal treatment here! This place is wonderful!”

Zuko makes a noise of disagreement. “I don't know, in the palace you had servants for just about everything. Holding the plates for you while you ate a snack in the gardens, tying your hair,” Zuko gives a shiver. “getting you dressed.”

Katara gives him an odd look. Zuko just raises his hands in defeat.

“Don't look at me like that. That's just the way the palace works, I never felt comfortable that someone was always supposed to help me get ready in the morning. It's why I learned how to put on anything I would ever wear myself, so I wouldn't need them.”

“Speaking of comfortable,” Katara turns towards Aang. “We shouldn't get too comfortable here. It's too risky to stay in place for too long. Especially since we just made our escape from Zuko's crew a few days ago.”

Aang hands a pastry to Momo's wandering arm looking for more treats before turning to her completely. “I'm sure we'll be fine. Besides,” he stands up and turns towards the open window behind them, giving them a view of Kyoshi's statue as it's being repainted. “did you see how happy I'm making this town? They're even repainting the statue in my honor.”

“Technically _our_ honor, but from their perspective, yes.” Zuko clarifies.

“Well, I'm glad to see you're excited about being the Avatar.” Katara explains. “I just don't want you letting this get to your head, Aang. Remember,” she touches his arm. “we're in this together.”

Aang lets out a laugh. “Come on, Katara. You and Zuko know me better than that. I'm just a simple monk.”

He leans on the window sill so he can look better outside. As soon as he emerges, the villagers scream with delight and admiration for him. Aang looks down in surprise to see where the sound came from, a bunch a little girls cheering for him a very enthusiastic girl in the front of the crowd. Aang flashes a broad smile at the girls while blushing. Katara stands up so she's behind him with her arms crossed in disapproval. She rolls her eyes and makes a raspberry. Zuko just groans and buries his face in his palms.

Later, Aang is running towards a brownish-red bridge. Aang quickly runs over it, trailed quickly by four screaming fangirls. Aang jumps over them to avoid another group of girls and runs back and traverses the bridge again. The girls are still following him, screaming loudly with the same amount of enthusiasm. On the other side, another group is waiting for him so he jumps back over the trailing group of girls and runs up the bridge, but halts in the middle, looking from left to right as he sees that hordes of fangirls are trapping him on the bridge as they run up from both sides. Before they can reach him, the airbender leaps in the air. The girls reach for the sky as they scream. They gasp for air in admiration when they see that Aang is suspended in the air by clinging to an airball. The ball, however, slowly reduces in size until it vanishes completely. Aang looks scared as he drops down into the crowd of little girl who happily catch him.

Later, Aang is in front of a waterfall with the enthusiastic girl from earlier. A painter is in front of them, having been asked to paint them by the girl. The painter lifts his canvas to start painting and manages to get the bases for Aang and the girl's body before he puts it down to look again. He's surprised to see another girl on Aang's other side, but simply adds her in, making adjustments where needed. He lowers the canvas again, only to see three more girls have joined in. He doesn't seem to mind and continues to paint them in. He looks at his models once again, only to see that Aang is surrounded by at least sixteen girls. He stares at them with a deadpan expression before standing up from his seat and walking off. The pile of girls quickly collapses under its own weight, burying Aang at the bottom.

Elsewhere on the island, Sokka is marching through some trees, grunting to himself. “I can't believe I got beat up by a bunch of girls wearing dresses.”

He looks up to notice a small building where female grunting and pants are originating. He walks to the open door to see the girls practicing a routing with a fan in perfect unison. Wishing that the boys back home had been this good, he puts on a smug smile and enters.

“Sorry ladies. Didn't mean to interrupt your fan dance.” the girls all look at him and close their fans before standing up. “I was just looking for a place to do a little bit of a workout.”

Suki walks over as Sokka does some 'warm-ups'. “Well, you're definitely in the right place.” they meet eyes as Sokka straightens his back. “Hey, sorry about yesterday. I didn't know you were friends with the Avatar.”

‘ **Technically, I'm also an Avatar, but can't tell her that.’** Sokka thinks to himself as he stretches his arms. “It's alright. I'd make sure to apologize to Zuko though. He's a little paranoid that you guys are going to poison him or something.” he twists his shoulders around.

Suki nods. “I didn't realize that we were making him that uncomfortable. I'll see about doing so later, it might mean more if it came from one of us.”

“Anyways, normally I would hold a grudge as well, but seeing as how you're all girls, I'll let it slide this time.” Sokka says mockingly.

A look seems to enter Suki's eyes. “I should hope so.” she says sarcastically. “A big strong man like you? We wouldn't stand a chance.”

Sokka, thinking he's won this, continues smugly. “True, but you girls shouldn't feel bad. I'm the best warrior from my village.”

Suki realizes that Sokka is unaware she is being sarcastic and leans forward with a smile. “'Best warrior', huh?” she looks back at the other warriors. “In your whole village?” she turns back towards Sokka. “Maybe you'd care to.. give us a demonstration?”

Sokka's eyes widen at the unexpected request. “Oh, well... I mean... I...” he's not sure what to say.

Suki turns back towards the others. “Come on girls! Wouldn't you like to see a real man fight?” The other girls, having caught onto Suki's plan, giggle in agreement.

Sokka sighs. “Well, if that's what you want, I'd be happy to.” he places his hands on Suki's shoulder in order to push her back a little, but she does not move a bit. “All right, you stand over there. Now, this may be a little tough, but try to block me.”

He goes to attack, but Suki blocks him by bringing her left arm up and thrusting her closed fan into Sokka's shoulder. He lets out a grunt and staggers back. He looks up at her as he rubs his injured shoulder.

“Heh heh... Good. Of course, I was going easy on you. You realize that, right?” Sokka asks, trying to save face.

Suki's face is nothing but confident. “Of course.”

Sokka, getting angry at her facial expression, tries to surprise her with a roundhouse kick. “Let's see if you can handle _this_!”

Suki quickly dodges under Sokka's outstretched leg and pushes him off balance. When the Water Tribe warrior lands flat on his back with a loud 'thud', Suki lazily opens her fans to wave herself some air. Sokka, a little shocked by his second failure, loses his temper at the sight of Suki's defiant posture and air of confidence.

“That does it!” Sokka cries.

He gets up and makes a mad charge for her again. Suki quickly closes her fan and moves out of Sokka's way. She grabs him by the arm with her right hand, while she pushes against his shoulder with her left hand, quickly spinning him around. After two turns, she switches position and spins Sokka in the other direction. Suki suddenly halts Sokka so he topples forward. Before falling down, Suki loosens Sokka's belt and ties his left hand to his right foot behind his back in one swift movement. Sokka tries to maintain his balance for a while by jumping on his remaining leg, but it is not long before he loses his footing and smacks down flat on his face.

Suki and the girls lean over him mockingly as she smiles. “Anything else you want to teach us?”

Sokka can only grunt in humiliation as the girls laugh at him.

Back with Aang and his fangirls, they're all standing in front of the freshly painted statue of Kyoshi. The girls are looking up at her in awe.

“There she is girls, me two lifetimes ago.” Aang tells them.

“Whoa...” one girl says.

“You were pretty.” another says.

Aang looks over to his side and catches sight of Katara. He gives the girls a promise to be right back before he runs over to her side.

“Hey Katara.” he beckons.

She turns around and smiles as she sees him. “Oh good! You can help me bring these back to the room.” she holds up a pot. “It's a little heavy.”

Aang holds his hands up to fob the offered pot. “Sorry, I can't. I promised the girls I'd give them a ride on Appa.”

Katara's face twists in irritation. “Really?”

“Why can't Zuko help you?” Aang asks, looking around for their missing Fire Nation prince.

“He was getting a little antsy in the room so I told him to go do something to relieve his stress levels. It was after he left that I went to get this stuff. I didn't realize it would be this heavy.”

Aang suddenly got a bright smile on his face. “Hey! Maybe you should come with us on Appa! It'll be lots of fun!”

Katara gives him a bland look before she returns to filling her pot with vegetables. “Watching you show off for a bunch of girls is not exactly what I would call 'fun'.”

Aang's face fills with disappointment. “Well, carrying your basket isn't what I would call fun either.”

“This isn't my basket!” she says annoyed as she looks at him. “These are supplies for our trip. I told you Aang, we can't stay here. We have to leave Kyoshi soon.”

Aang's face looks pained. “But, I don't want to leave yet. I don't what it is about this place, but there's something I like about it.”

One of the girls back by the group stomps her foot. “What is taking you so long, Aangy?”

Katara raises her eyebrow. “'Aangy'?” she asks mockingly.

Aang waves back at her. “Just a second, Koko!”

In a sarcastic voice, Katara replies. “'Simple monk', huh?” she turns towards him as he looks back at her. “Aang, you promised that you wouldn't let this Avatar stuff go to your head.”

“It didn't.” Aang tells her. “You know what? I think you're just jealous.”

“'Jealous'?” she asks, angry and confused. “Over what?”

Aang looks at her and smiles. “Jealous that we're having so much fun without you and,” he leans forward and whispers. “that none of you guys can get the special 'I'm-the-Avatar' treatment because we're keeping it a secret.”

“Aang!” Katara cries, feeling scandalous. “I can't believe you!” she pays for the food and takes her pot and stomps away.

Aang feels a little guilty, but that feeling vanishes as the girls come over and pull him away to go find Appa.

In a clearing in the woods, Zuko is running through the woods while practicing with his swords. Despite the special treatment for 'being the Avatar's friend', Zuko still felt like the villagers wanted to gut or poison him. He understood their feelings, but it didn't make him feel any better. Eventually, Katara realized his unease and had him go to the woods to lower his stress just as long as he didn't light anything on fire. So instead, he decided to practice with his Dao sword. As he jumps from tree to tree, fighting imaginary foes, he remembers the other day when Sokka called them swords. He was intrigued to realize that twin Dao blades are referred to as a single sword since they were two halves of a single blade, which eventually lead him to asking for sword lessons later. Zuko would have given them then, but they were flying over two thousand feet above the ground at the time, so he decided to leave the offer for later.

He decides to take a break for awhile and jumps to the ground and puts his sword back in its sheath. Taking a look around, he realizes he's near the training building for the Kyoshi warriors. Figuring he'll take a quick peek, he walks over and looks through the doorway. He's amazed by the synchronization of the ladies as they move through their routine. Rarely had he ever seen his sister synchronize that well with her friends, even with her rigorous training sessions. Zuko suddenly flinches as Suki looks over, spotting him. He turns to leave them to their training and doesn't hear as she stops the routine.

“Wait!” he hears her call to him.

He stops walking and slowly turns towards her as she walks up to him.

“Look, I wanted to say I'm sorry for what we said about you.” she apologizes with a bow. “Calling you scum and threatening to have you drowned was wrong, and I'm sorry.” she straightens and looks into his eyes. “Also, we're sorry about yesterday.” she gestures to the other girls who gather behind her. “We didn't know you and the Avatar were friends. I'm assuming you're his firebending teacher?”

“Apology accepted, and don't worry about it. It's not the first time someone has threatened my life, so don't feel bad.” Zuko tells her. “As for being his teacher, yes. I will teach him firebending, once he's mastered water and earth. Until then, I can teach the others how to fight with a weapon and their hands. Especially if Katara and Aang are in a situation where they can't bend.”

Suki and the girls look a little disturbed when he tells them he's been threatened before, but they light up with curiosity when he tells them about teaching the others how to use a weapon and their hands.

“You're a bender and you fight with weapons?” Suki asks, a little confused. “I thought benders, firebenders specifically, thought using a weapon was below them since they could bend instead.” the other warriors nod in agreement.

“When you grow up with someone who can take your bending away like I did,” Zuko begins. “you learn fast that it's better to have a second option to defend yourself. So I started learning to wield the Dao sword as a safety.”

“Take away your bending? People can do that?” Suki looks surprised.

“Yes, it's called chi blocking. For benders it can take your bending, but an experienced chi blocker knows how to hit your pressure points to leave you unable to move a muscle.” Zuko explains.

Suki looks at the sword on his back. “So, do you know how to actually fight compared to your Water Tribe friend?” she asks with a smile.

Zuko groans. “Dear Agni, what did he do?” he dreads the answer.

“He came in arrogantly and tried to be the big guy and left in shame when he realized he couldn't even take down one girl.” Suki told him.

Zuko rubs his right temple. “He grew up in an area where women aren't taught how to fight, don't worry. If it weren't for the fact that his sister is a waterbender, he would treat her the exact same way as he did you ladies. He was shocked when I told him that even women join the army and navy, even those who never fight in the war are taught how to defend themselves, bender or non-bender. It's a thought process he's trying to get out of, but it's slow going.” he looks at Suki. “Frankly, I think what you did might help him. Yeah, it hurt his pride, but it might actually get it through his head that girls can fight just as well, in your case better, as any man.”

The Kyoshi Warriors take on proud faces at his compliment to their fighting skills. Suki eyes his sword strapped to his back.

“Care to show us how well you can fight with either weapon or hands?” she asks.

Looking at the other girls, Zuko realizes that they _all_ want to see him fight. Shrugging, not seeing the harm since he felt no shame in fighting a bunch of talented girls. He follows them back to the dojo and the girls stand to the side while Suki walks to the other side of the room, pulling out her fans. Zuko pulls out his Dao with expert hands and the two face off.

Suki lunges at him, intending to jab him in the shoulder with her fan, but Zuko blocks with his right blade and attacks with his left. This forces her to pull back and pull up her other fan in defense so she doesn't get cut. Once his blade passes she ducks into to take a shot, but Zuko jumps back and lands on his feet. Suki looks impressed.

“Nice moves, how long have you been using those?” she asks as Zuko goes at her with an attack of his own.

“Since I was eight.” he replies as she deflects his blade. “I was a late bloomer with firebending, so I thought it would be a good idea to learn a different way to defend myself.” he goes at her with a spin, twirling his blades in his hands.

“How much of a late bloomer?” Suki asks, genuinely curious. She parries his blades with her fans and follows with a roundhouse kick.

Using the flat edges of his blades to block but not hurt, Zuko pushes hard which sends her off balance. “Bending starts to show at five, I didn't show until I was six while my sister started at four.”

“That must have been hard.” Suki replies as she charges him head on.

“It was.” Zuko dodges her and spins around her so he has his blades crossing her neck. “But I lived.”

Suki smiles as Zuko removes his blades and the other girls start to clap, impressed by what they witnessed. She tucks away her fans as Zuko puts away his Dao.

“Now how about hand to hand?” she asks as she throws a punch.

Zuko grabs her fist and uses her momentum to deflect her to the side. “Pretty good, I'm not a master, but I can hold my own.”

Suki turns back towards him with a kick. “So how did you learn hand to hand?”

He leans to the side to avoid the kick and grabs her ankle. “The past three years left me with a lot of spare time. Plus, bending moves can easily be translated to fighting moves.”

Caught off guard, Suki struggles to regain her balance.

“Not to mention,” Zuko swiftly knocks her off her feet with a kick to her remaining foot. “I had to deal with every other person on my ship being older than me.”

Suki looks up at him in surprise, before a smile stretches across her face. “You're good.”

Zuko reaches a hand down to help her up. “You're the best female Earth Kingdom fighter I've ever had the pleasure of meeting. Very few are like you ladies and take the initiative to learn to fight.”

Suki takes his hand. “Well, hopefully you can pass some of that off to your friend, Sokka was it?”

Zuko rubs the back of his head. “I'm sure he'll learn. He has a big mouth, but he knows when to admit defeat when he's proven wrong, at least, most of the time.” he turns to leave. “Well, I should get back. I need to check on Katara and Aang.”

The Kyoshi Warriors wave him goodbye as he walks away from the dojo, the girls feeling excited to see a real fighter who could take on their leader in both weapons and hand to hand. Zuko was feeling rather relaxed, his stress levels much lower now. As he heads back to the village, he spots Sokka walking towards him, probably in the direction of the dojo.“

Hey.” he calls out to him.

Sokka looks up, apparently not having seen him. “Oh, hey.” he glances over to the dojo behind Zuko.

The scarred teen crosses his arms in amusement. “I take it you learned a good lesson earlier?”

Sokka blushes and opens his mouth to protest, before thinking it over and closing it. “Yeah.” he gives a little nod. “I was going to ask them to teach me.”

Zuko is rather surprised, before he smiles and pats him on the shoulder as he passes him. “Good luck.”

Sokka looks at Zuko's back as he walks away, hoping that wasn't given in teasing, but decides to take it how it sounds. He continues on his way to the dojo and walks in, feeling a little embarrassed as the girls stop their training once again to look again.

“Um, hey Suki.” he says awkwardly.

Suki looks at him with a light hostile look. “Hoping for another dance lesson?” she would have been harsher, but her spars with Zuko seems to have settled her down a bit.

Sokka doesn't really know what to do here. “I, um. Let me explain.”

Suki crosses her arms. “Spit it out. What do you want?”

He takes a deep breath and humbly drops to his knees. “I would be honored if you would teach me.”

“Even if I'm a girl?” she asks mockingly.

He looks off to the side. “I'm sorry if I insulted you all earlier. I was... wrong.”

Suki steps up so she's standing right in front of him. “We usually don't teach outsiders. Let alone any boys.”

He raises his head to look at her determinedly. “Please can you make an exception?” he bows before her. “I won't let you down.”

Suki furrows her brows as she thinks to only a few minutes before.

“ _He_ _has a big mouth, but he knows when to admit defeat when he's proven wrong, at least, most of the time.”_

She uncrosses her arms and places them on her hips. “Alright. But you have to follow all of our traditions.” she tells him.

Sokka lifts his face. “Of course.”

“And I mean _all_ of them.” she tells him with a smile.

A few minutes later, Suki looks on as Sokka stands in front of a mirror dressed in the Kyoshi Warrior uniform and face paint. She is highly amused by his embarrassment.

“Do I really have to wear this?” he asks as he looks down at his wardrobe. “I feel so... girly.”

She takes a little mercy on him by making him feel better. “You should feel honored when wearing that uniform, it's for warriors. The silk threads symbolize the brave blood we have flowing through our veins. The gold insignia? That represents the honor of the warrior's heart.”

Her comments seem to work and he immediately looks more comfortable wearing the uniform. Behind her, she hears someone walk by and turns to see the Avatar.

“Bravery and honor.” Sokka says proudly.

“Hey Sokka!” Aang calls.Sokka's form immediately hunches in on itself. “Nice dress.”

As Aang walks back through the village, he heads to the house he and his friends were staying in. He walks into a room to see Katara practicing her waterbending. Zuko is off to the side sharpening his Dao. She just has a simple bowl of water and is practicing moving it around like a wisp of grass.Aang leans against the doorway.

“Hey Katara.” Zuko glances up at him.

“Hi Aang.” she answers, not looking up from her waterbending.

“So... you know how the Unagi almost got me yesterday?” he asks her.

“Yeah, what about it?” she resorts.

“Well, I'm going to go ride it.” he brags. “It's going to be super dangerous.” Zuko raises his eyebrow.

“Good for you.” Katara says, uninterested.

Aang looks surprised. “You're... you're not going to try and stop me?” he asks.

“Nope. Go have fun.” she tells him.Aang crosses his arms. “I will.”

“Great.” she retorts.

“I know it's great.” he shoots back.

“I'm glad you know.” she fires back.

“I'm glad you're glad.” Aang says annoyed.

“Good!” she snaps as she loses control over the water and it falls back into the bowl.

“Fine!” he snaps back and walks out of the room.

Zuko looks at the door for about a minute after he leaves before looking over at Katara. “You should go after him. He may be our Air piece, but he's childish. And children get themselves into trouble.”

Katara snaps her head up to look at him, but he's already turned his gaze back to his blades as he returns to sharpening them. Katara looks down at her lap in contemplation.

Back at the dojo, Sokka is performing exercises under Suki's watchful gaze.

“You're not going to master it in one day. Not even I'm that good.” she tells him.

“I think I'm starting to get it.” he says as he performs a series of well executed moves. “Ha tah!”

He closes his fan and throws it out of the dojo. The object flies straight into a tree, knocking down some of the snow that had gathered on it's branches.

Suki peeks outside and turns towards Sokka with a smile. “It's not about the strength. Our technique is about using your opponent's force against them. Loosen up.” she pulls out her own fan and points it towards Sokka, who gets into stance. “Think of the fan as an extension of your arm. Wait for an opening and then-”

Suki charges at Sokka, who evades her attack and uses her momentum against her, just like she told him, and knocks her on her behind, much to Suki's surprise.

Sokka is just as surprised as her, but he quickly crosses his arms and looks smug. “Hmm.”

Suki gets up quickly. “I fell down on purpose to make you feel better!” she tells him.

Sokka points at her ecstatically. “I got you! Admit I got you!”

Suki quickly grasps Sokka's pointing finger, making him twitch and grunt. “Okay, it was a lucky shot.” she tells him as she releases his finger. “Now. Let's see if you can do it again.”

At the bay, Aang is swimming in the water while his fangirls are sitting around on shore completely bored. They had been waiting for a while for the Unagi to show, but no luck.

“What is taking so long?” one girl asks.

Aang cups his hands around his mouth. “I'm sure it'll be here any minute!” he pulls out his marbles. “What about this, huh?”

“Not that little trick again.” one girl says. “Boring.”

“Where's the Unagi?” another says. “It's getting late.”

Aang waves out to them. “Wait! Where are you going? Don't leave!”

“Sorry, Aang!” another girl calls out to him. “Better luck next time.” she tells him as she and the other girls walk back towards the village.

Aang lowers himself into the water in disappointment. He looks up to see them leave, but breaks into a smile when he sees Katara walking to the shore.

“You came?!” he calls out to her.

“I wanted to make sure you were safe.” she calls out concerned. “You really had me worried.”

“Back in the house you acted like you didn't care.” he says.

She looks regretful. “I'm sorry.” she tells him.

“Yeah me too. I did let the attention get to my head. You were right, we are in this together.” Aang smiles softly. “Sorry for being such a jerk.” he calls out.

Katara calls out with a smile. “Well come get out of the water before you get a cold, you big jerk!”

Smiling broadly, Aang starts swimming back to shore. “Coming!”

Suddenly, a giant dorsal fin appears from out of the water behind hi. Katara's eyes open in shock and she gasps in horror. Aang is oblivious to the danger approaching him, a smile still on his face as he continues to swim towards her. Out of nowhere, Aang is swept away by a wave and lifted out of the water, while screaming in panic. He looks around to find himself sitting on the back of the Unagi as the monstrously sized eel erects itself before him and directs a power jet of water from its mouth at him. Aang manages to withstand the water by holding onto one of the creatures smaller dorsal fins. The animal charges Aang and tries to eat him, but Aang narrowly escapes by catching one of Unagi's whiskers. Screaming at the top of his lungs, Aang dangles from side to side in front of the Unagi's eyeball. The eel quickly and violently moves its head in all directions trying to snatch Aang off its whiskers.

“Hold on, Aang!” Katara cries out.

Aang's face is filled with terror as he holds on for his very life. Unagi tosses him around some more and finally, Aang lets go. He is thrown through the air, still screaming, and smacks in the water, not very far from the shore where Katara stands. He emerges back to the surface, very much unconscious. Katara quickly rushes into the water and starts rushing for him.

“Aang!” she screams.

The Unagi shrieks and dives under to get it's defenseless prey. It's a race between a giant eel and a very worried waterbender. Katara wins as she wraps her arm around Aang's chest. The Unagi emerges right in front of them, and in an attempt to get away Katara violently pushes the water which propels herself and Aang backwards towards shore and away from the sea creature. Unagi snatches at the water where they used to be and becomes furious when it comes up with nothing. The wave from the Unagi's impact creates a wave that slams Aang and Katara back into the rocks on shore. Angered that its prey escaped once more, the Unagi sends out one last jet of water before submerging again.

Sitting up to catch her breath, she looks down at Aang and opens her mouth to call his name when suddenly a hand slams over her mouth. She turns towards the hands owner and is relieved to see it was only Zuko. He held a finger to his lips and quietly points behind the rocks at her back. Slowly, she turns around and carefully peeks over the rocks edge. She sees a fast approaching ship that is clearly Fire Nation. Once it reaches shore the walkway is lowered and several riders on komodo rhino's with a man with large sideburns in the lead seat. Several soldiers on foot rest behind the beasts.

He turns towards the soldiers behind him. “I want the Avatar, ALIVE.” he snaps the reins. “And if you happen to find where they're holding our dear Prince Zuko, bring him back to the ship.”

As the riders and foot soldiers pass their hiding spot, Katara leans over Aang's body protectively while Zuko leans over her to keep her blue clothes hidden. Once they pass and Zuko gives the all clear she turns her attention towards Aang.

“Wake up, Aang.” she says worriedly.

“Come on.” Zuko mutters.

Katara holds a hand over Aang's chest while she supports his head with the other. She pulls her hand from his navel to his mouth, a trail of water coming from his mouth and he starts to cough.

“Katara... Zuko..” he moans. “Riding the Unagi... Not fun..” he tells them.

She and Zuko smile in relief before she helps him sit up. “We need to leave, now. Some fire nations soldiers just docked on the island and they're looking for you and Zuko.”

“His name is Zhao.” Zuko supplies. “He's a Fire Nation Captain last time I saw him.” he looks back in the direction of the village. “It wouldn't surprise me that he's found out that the Avatar's alive and that I got 'captured'.” he turns back towards Aang. “Come on, let's get you dressed. We need to go back and get Sokka.”

Katara looks at Zuko. “You need to go get Appa.” she tells him. “If this Zhao sees you running around free, clearly not captured, then the game is up.”

Zuko looks at the two of them, clearly wanting to protest, but thinks better of it and nods. He stands up and give the two one last look before he runs off in search of the sky bison.

Back in the Kyoshi dojo, Suki and Sokka are still practicing. Momo is resting in the rafters eating some sweets he snagged from earlier. Suki thrusts her fan, which Sokka blocks easily.

“Not bad.” she tells him.He smiles at her, and she smiles back. Suddenly, the village elder Oyaji rushes into the dojo.“Firebenders have landed on our shores!” he gestures to the two of them. “Girls! Come quickly!” he turns and runs back towards the village.

Suki rushes after him while Sokka lags. “Hey wait! I'm not a-” Momo lands on his shoulder and launches towards the door. “Oh whatever!” he runs after them.

In the village, Zhao and his soldiers are sitting on their rhinos at the base of the Kyoshi statue.

“Come on out, Avatar!” Zhao yells. “You can't hide from me forever!” no movement occurs anywhere in the village. “Find him.”

As Zhao gives the command, the rhinos and soldiers start moving through town. Out of their sight; however, the Kyoshi Warriors quickly pass them behind some houses. One jumps to the roof and pushes herself off, followed by two other warriors. They manage to knock off two of the riders, Zhao managing to stay on his. One Kyoshi Warrior lands on a rhino and opens her fans. The rider stabs at her with his spear, but she moves to the right, disarms him, and jumps up to knock him off his steed with a spinning kick. Out of nowhere, Suki appears and makes a run towards Zhao. She moves to the left to avoid a fire blast from the Commander. She jumps to avoid another one and tries to attack him from the air, but he turns his rhino. The beast slams her away with a mighty sweep of his tail, knocking her down. Zhao shoots a fire blast at the downed warrior, but right before it would have burned her, Sokka jumps in front of her and decimates the flames with a sweep of his fan. He gets into a stance to fight Zhao, but another warrior jumps from a nearby roof, taking advantage of Zhao's distraction to knock him from his rhino, allowing the beast to dash away.

Sokka turns towards a recovered Suki. “I guess training's over!”

Sokka makes a run for the downed commander. He, Suki, and the other Kyoshi Warriors all take a fighting stance around him. Recovering from the surprise attack, Zhao opens his eyes in anger and pushes himself up and rapidly spins around on his hand while shooting fire out of his feet, knocking them all back into the houses and slamming Suki against a wooden pole. She winces in pain. Zhao turns and delivers a low fire in Sokka's direction. The Water Tribe warrior in Kyoshi garb jumps over the fire, but once he lands Zhao sweeps his feet out from underneath him. Sokka falls harshly on his back, allowing Zhao to jump over him so he stands in the middle of the street. He looks around, clearly angry, but is able to control it.

“Nice try, Avatar!” he calls out. “But unfortunately, these little girls won't be able to save your skin!”

“Hey! Over here, ugly!”

Zhao turns around to see Aang standing in the middle of the street holding his staff out in front of him.

Zhao grins. “Well, it's about time.” Zhao says. “So, what are you going to do now? Avatar.” he asks.

“What do you expect me to do?” Aang asks, trying to get a feel for this newcomer.

“Well, I _expect_ you to come quietly, including your two Water Tribe friends, as well as hand over the Fire Nation banished prince that you took hostage.” he says in a tone that says he really expects his words to be followed. “However,” he suddenly grins. “if you would rather fight, then I would be glad to take you in pieces. After all, I don't need you all there. I just need you _alive_.”

Zhao suddenly snaps his hands out, sending two fireballs in Aang's direction. The airbender ducks underneath the first then uses his staff to decimate the second. He rapidly spins the staff over his head, propelling himself into the air. He lands in front of Zhao, who quickly kicks the staff out of his hands. Aang jumps up and lands between two fans of a downed Kyoshi Warrior. He stands up and picks up the fans with his airbending. Zhao charges Aang with his fist set ablaze stretched out before him. Aang spins around a few times to create a bigger momentum and uses the extra power from his swirl to blast Zhao into a nearby house with a strong blast of air. Aang looks sad as he lowers the fans, he turns and runs down the main street and picks up his staff along the way. Tossing the object into the air, where it snaps open into his glider, he jumps on. With a saddened face, Aang looks down to see a lot of burning houses and Fire Nation troops among them. Looking back, Aang sees the burning statue of Avatar Kyoshi, which saddens Aang even more. Looking around Aang spots Katara on the ground as she leads several of his fangirls into a house.

She looks up as he lands next to her. “Look what I brought to this place, Katara.”

She rests a hand on his shoulder. “It's not your fault.” she tells him.

He looks at her, clearly upset. “Yes it _is_ !” he gestures to the entire town around him. “These people got their home destroyed trying to protect me! To protect _us_!”

Katara pulls him into her arms. “Then let's get out of here. Zhao will probably leave Kyoshi to follow us. I know, _I know_ , it feels wrong to run, but I feel that it's the only way.”

Aang looks crestfallen. “I’ll keep watch for Appa.”

Back on the battlefield a Kyoshi Warrior deflects a fire blast with her fan and retaliates by throwing her other closed fan towards the firebender. With a resounding ' _clunk_ ', the object makes contact with the bender's helmet, knocking him on his rear. Back in an ally, Sokka and Suki are retreating, deflecting fireballs left and right before they find relief behind a house.

Suki turns to Sokka. “There's not time to say goodbye. You've got to go!”

“What about 'I'm sorry'?” he asks her.

She looks confused. “For what?”

He looks at her dead in the eye. “I treated you all like girls when I should have been treating you like warriors.”

Suki looks at him with a smile. “We are warriors.” she leans in and gives him a hug, giving him a peck on the cheek as she pulls away. “But we _are_ girls too.”

Sokka touches his cheek in shock.

“Now get out of here! We'll hold them off while you guys get away!” she tells him.

He nods and rushes off towards Appa who is lying ready a few meters away. Momo lands on Sokka's shoulder as he climbs Appa's tail into the saddle. Aang pulls the reins.

“Appa! Yip-yip!” Appa grunts as he lifts off and flies over the village.

Zhao looks up to see the bison flying away. Turning towards his men he made a sharp gesture towards the bison's direction. “Back to the ship! We must not lose sight of them!” the Fire Nation turns back towards the coast where their ship is docked.

The Gaang settle in the saddle. Zuko keeping to a section where he hopefully can't be seen from the ground. Sokka wiping off the face paint while Katara and Aang look back towards the burning village. Zuko places a hand on Aang's shoulder to try and comfort him.

“Look, I know it's hard, but we did the right thing. I know Zhao. If he was here for his own enjoyment, he would have started to take lives, but when he has a goal he will do whatever it takes to get it. He would have torn that place apart looking for us.” he pats his shoulder. “It's going to be okay.”

Suddenly, Aang jumps off Appa's head and into the bay below them.

“Aang!” Zuko, Sokka and Katara cry as they lean over the saddle edge.

Looking down at the surface, a few ripples betray the coming of something coming to break the water line. Rapidly, Unagi shoots out of the water with Aang on top of his head, holding his whiskers. After a few sways back and forth, he settles himself atop Unagi's head and pulls the creatures barbels. The giant eel opens its mouth wide and begins gushing water which rains over the town. The huge coming of water puts out the fires as well as drench Zhao and his men. The Unagi ceases to gush water and launches Aang into the air, who is subsequently caught by Appa.

Back at the village, Oyaji smiles as he watches the bison fade into the sky. “Thank you, Avatar.”

Aang settles into the saddle. “Yeah, yeah. I know. That was reckless and highly dangerous.”

Katara crosses her arms. “Yes, it was.”

“Don't do it again.” Zuko and Sokka say in unison.

The group collapse into laughter as they fly on, a Fire Nation ship in pursuit behind them. Kyoshi Island fading into the horizon.

 

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> All comments will be read and enjoyed.
> 
> Helpful ones will be read and loved.
> 
> Deliberate flames with be read and passed over.
> 
> Thank you all!
> 
> Uploaded (Ao3): 11/21/2018  
> Uploaded (Fanfiction.net): 11/20/2018


	4. Omashu

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Major author's note at the end, make sure you read that!  
> Disclaimer: I do not own canon Avatar: The Last Airbender, but this AU of it is my creation, this AU belongs to no one by Lex_Perseph0ne and myself. Anyone who tries? Fight me.

On a slightly covered snow hill, the Gaang is walking up the rocky side. The group had decided to give Appa a break a hill or two ago, and only Zuko and Aang were enjoying the walk. Having never walked this kind of terrain before, Sokka and Katara frequently grew tired, but Zuko urged them on, as this would help them build up endurance and muscle. Once they reach the top of the hill, Aang takes in a big sigh of cool, fresh morning air. Zuko stretches out his limbs while Katara and Sokka are bent over trying to catch their breath. He turns back to his friends and spreads his arms open wide as his face splits with a big grin.

“Welcome!” he tells them. “To the Great Earth Kingdom of Omashu!!” he gestures to the large city structure behind him.

The city of Omashu is surrounded on all sides by very steep canyons and an ginormous gorge. The city's three gates are composed of massive blocks of stone, each at least five feet thick and over thirty feet tall. This design was put in so the gates could only be opened by highly skilled earthbenders, who are the only ones who get stationed to guard the entrance. The actual city itself is built on several hills in it's overall pyramid design. The Omashu palace sits on the very top of the tallest hill. It may look small, but it houses over a thousand ordinary citizens and nobles as well as shops, restaurants, pottery shops, jewelry stores, etc. From this distance, you could still see the tubes and chutes that Aang had mentioned back on the ship that is used as their mailing system.

“This is where Monk Gyatso would take me to visit my friend, Bumi!” the airbender says happily.

Katara straightens once she catches her breath and looks at the magnificent city. “Didn't you mention a Bumi back on the ship?” she asks.

Aang turns to her with a nod. “Yeah, he was one of my Earth Kingdom friends from a hundred years ago.” he looks back towards the city. “It's a bit bigger than before, but it otherwise looks the same.”

The others walk forward so their shoulder to shoulder with each other as they look out at the large stony city.

“I have to say,” Katara says, putting her hands on her hips. “I'm impressed. We don't have buildings like this back at home.”

“They don't melt.” Sokka says, clearly overwhelmed. “Their buildings don't melt.”

Aang snickers under his hand. “Well, I wouldn't think so. They build their houses out of rock instead of ice. If you try building with snow here it'll all melt before you finish a single wall.”

Zuko reaches a hand up to ruffle his hair as he puts the other on a hip. “Remind me why we came here, Aang?” he asks.

“I felt we could use a change of pace. We don't have to worry about that Zhao guy or Iroh since they have to stay near their boats. Besides, it won't hurt anybody.”

Zuko and Sokka facepalm. “Now you've jinxed it.” they mutter in unison.

Katara smacks them both on the head. “Oh, knock it off you two! We're going to be just fine!”

“I doubt it.” Zuko says.

“You're the one who always says that to me when I say something stupid, Katara.” Sokka points out to his sister.

“Okay!” Aang jumps in before an argument can escalate. “Why don't we get going, slowpokes! The fun is inside the city! Not out here arguing!” he jumps off the top of the hill with an airbended jump and starts to slide down the hill.

“Hey, wait!” Zuko exclaims. Aang halts his descent and looks back at him. “Remember, we're trying to keep the number of people who know you're 'the Avatar',” he finger-quotes. “down to a minimum.”

Aang rubs his bald head. “Heh, I forgot.”

“The two of you need disguises.” Sokka states. “You're both too recognizable as an airbender and a Fire Nation prince.”

Aang looks up at the Water Tribe boy. “What am we supposed to do?” he asks sarcastically. “Grow a three foot beard and pair of new eyes?”

xXx

Aang furiously rubs at his nose which now sports a long mustache that hangs over the beard now attached to his jawline. His bald head now sporting a tall spiky wig. All three items made courtesy of Appa's fur.

“Agh! This stuff is irritatingly itchy!” he reaches a hand up to scratch at his scalp in his wig. “How can you live in this stuff, buddy!?” he asks, looking up at the sky bison next to him.

Appa just gives his friend a snort in the face, blowing at the fur made items on Aang's person.

“I'd rather be itchy than forced to be blinded by cloth and hair.” Zuko states as he messes with his hair.

Since Zuko was still in his gray clothes from his ship, he didn't automatically look Fire Nation since gray was used in all nations. However, his pale skin drew in the people's eyes, which then drew their eyes up to his face, which held his scar, which drew attention to his royal family molten gold irises. To hide this, they put a bandage over the left side of his face to hide his recognizable scar. To hide his unclothed eye from passing eyes, Katara helped style his hair to cover his right eye. Unfortunately, this severely drained Zuko's vision even more with the clothed eye. They decided to go with the story that he was injured a few weeks back by a firebender and his right eye was going through sympathy blindness. To complete the look, they found a long branch he could use as a walking stick. He would have used Aang's staff, but he was using it for his old man look.

“Perfect.” Sokka observed. “Now Aang looks like our grandfather and Zuko looks like a disabled.”

“Oh. Joy.” the airbender and firebender deadpan together.

Katara snickers as she looks them over. “Well, technically Aang is 112 years old.”

“But I'm not disabled.” Zuko insists, frustration paving his voice.

“We have to hide your eyes somehow, Zuko.” Sokka explained. “You can push the hair away once we're in the city.”

Aang seems to gain life again at the mention of getting inside the city and nimbly picks up his staff and gives it a quick spin before thumping it on the ground and hunching over as he held it with both hands to exaggerate a hunched back.

“Let's get a going, you whipper-snappers!” Aang cheers, mimicking an elder's voice. “The city of Omashu awaits us!” and he turns to start heading down the hill.

Zuko lets out a long suffering sigh as he holds steady to his designated walking stick and follows close to Katara, who is supposed to be his 'guide'. Sokka follows the group from the rear. The small group of four is rather quiet on their walk down. They stick to the middle of the long rocky path with no side rails to prevent people from falling off, and since only one of them knows how to fly they'd rather not take that chance. As they approach the gate they can see a short line consisting of an old man with a cart full of cabbages.

“You're just going to love Omashu! I just know it!” Aang states as they get closer to the gate. “The people in the city are the friendliest in the world!”

The four teens halt their approach at the sound of a harsh voice.

“Rotten cabbages!” cries a sentry guarding the gate. “What kind of slum do you think this place is here!?”

The man squishes the cabbage he's holding and knocks the two the merchant held out of his hands. He then stomps his foot and earthbends a rock under the cabbage cart, sending it over the edge of the walkway. The four teens behind him follow the cart's descent down the chasm and audibly gulp.

“ _MY CABBAGES!!!!!_ ” the merchant screams in a high pitch that makes the four Avatars and guard sentries flinch harshly.

“'Friendliest in the world', huh?” Sokka whispers to Aang.

“Just keep smiling.” is all Aang has to say.

“I'm hurt, why would I smile?” Zuko can't help but reply sarcastically.

Katara and Sokka exchange glances and put on rather forced smiles, following the oldest and youngest in front of them. As Aang approaches the gates, the earthbender from before raises a boulder out of the ground and holds it above Aang's head. Zuko has to physically restrain himself from falling into a defensive stance while the Water Tribe siblings can feel their faces start to hurt from forcing their smiles to stay on their faces.

“State your business, old man.” the guard demands aggressively, glaring down at the disguised airbender.

Using a subtle burst of airbending, Aang runs out from under the boulder and halts right in front of the stunned guard. Shoving a finger in the man's surprised face, he goes off on a rant.

“My business is my business, young man and none of yours!” the boulder slams to the ground from the guard losing concentration. “I've got half of a brain to take you over my knee and paddle your backside! Maybe that ought to teach you a thing or two about respecting your elders and minding your manners around children!”

Sokka is staring in shock while Katara is shaking her head in disbelief, Zuko's jaw is hanging open from amazement. The guard leans his head back to get away from Aang's finger and holds his hands up in surrender.

“Take it easy, old timer. Just tell me your names.”

Aang leans back like a suspicious, grumpy old man before grunting. “Name's Bonzu Pippinpaddleopsicopolis, the Third. And these are my grand kiddies.”

Katara takes the opportunity to walk up with a much more convincing smile and talks the talk. “Hello, June Pippinpaddleopsicopolis, nice to meet you.”

The man look pensively as he looks between Katara and Aang, rubbing his beard. “You seem like a responsible young lady. See that your grandfather stays out of trouble.” his gaze flies over Sokka and lands on Zuko. “Hold it, he doesn't look like he's family.”

Aang shuffles over and rests a hand on Zuko's arm as the disguised firebender clutches at his walking stick. “He's not, but he's as good as. His parents were good friends of mine. They pasted away some months ago when they were ambushed. He was injured in the attack, as you can see.” he gestures to the bandage. “Nearly blind in one eye, going through sympathy blindness in the other, poor boy. Luckily I was already on my way to see them, or I might never have found him. I've been taking care of him ever since.”

The man's face shows brief pity at the sight of Zuko's 'injury', and nods in satisfaction at 'Bonzu's' explanation. “I see, well, I'm sorry for your loss young man.” he says to Zuko. “I hope you get better soon.” he steps aside to let them pass. “Enjoy Omashu.”

Zuko and Aang pass by, Katara and Sokka right behind them, they all freeze at the guards call.

“Wait a minute. You two are young able-body, and healthy young teens.” he says referring to Katara and Sokka. “Show some respect for the injured and elderly and carry their things.”

Aang removes his shoulder bag with enthusiasm as he tosses it over to Katara. “Good idea!” he reaches over and takes Zuko's shoulder bag and tosses that to Sokka. Katara catches her load while Sokka gets hit in the head. Aang takes Zuko's arm to 'help him along' with a cheerful “Come on now, young-lings!” over his shoulder as they enter the grand city.

The big emblem on the wall splits evenly as the wall is opened via earthbending to let passengers through. A second and third wall are bent aside as well. The guard watches them as the gates are bent back shut, his eyes widening as he sees a pair of _animal ears_ pop out of the elderly man's hair. The gate closes entirely before he can say anything, however.

Meanwhile, inside the city, the Gaang are taking in the sight of the city spread out around them. As Aang pulls up next to him, Momo decides to pop out of his wig. The four teens look upon the buildings of stone. Sokka and Katara in particular due to only having seen igloos.

“This is nothing like our igloos at home. Their houses are so tall.” Sokka says in astonishment.

Zuko snorts a little as he pushes the hair out of his right eye. “Well, the material they use to build it is more stable than snow or ice, so they can afford to build second or third story buildings.”

The Water Tribe siblings bristle in irritation. “Well, it's not our fault the only material we have that we can use to build is ice and snow!” Sokka replies tartly. “It's not like we have forests of wood trees growing around to build homes from!”

“Don't you people have wooden boats?” Zuko asks snarkily.

“Only for the large ones used by our warriors!” Sokka shoots back. “Our warriors, you know, the ones who had to leave to fight in this war?”

“You know, the one your ancestors started?” Katara adds in acidly.

Aang flinches from the sudden harshness in his friend's voices. “Guys?” he asks uneasy.

“Since when do people put the blame of someone who is long dead on their descendants?” Zuko asks, feeling a little hurt from their accusations.

“I don't see why people shouldn't? They can't make the person who committed the crime pay, so why not make their blood pay?” Katara snaps, seeming to take delight in Zuko's flinch.

“GUYS!” Aang steps in between his friends, hoping to stop whatever this was. “Why don't we go take a better look at those chutes? My friend, Bumi, found a way to make them fun! Want to go and see?” he asks, his gray eyes darting between blue and gold.

For a few moments, no one says anything. Then Katara spits out a 'fine' with Sokka giving a firm nod of his head. Aang then looks over to his other friend, his offer still shining in his worried gray eyes searching Zuko's molten gold for assurance. Zuko just gives a nod and Aang gives him a weak smile as he takes the lead and shows the group over to a nearby mail station. It looks like the mail men are on break, since the place is empty. With some help, Aang got an empty mail cart onto the track. Sokka and Katara look at the cart in trepidation.

“What.... _exactly_ do you plan on doing?” Zuko asks nervously as he stares at the cart.

“Once Bumi asked me to look at the mail chutes and he asked me what I saw. I told him I saw the mail system. He then told me that instead of seeing what it's intended purpose was, I had to open my mind to the possibilities.”

“So what?” Sokka says. “He suggested a packaging system?”

Aang gave his friends a face splitting grin. “He was a mad genius. Because he introduced me to the world's greatest super slide!”

Sokka holds up his hands. “Wait! You want us to get into THAT?”

Aang shrugs. “Why not?” he pushes the cart to the beginning of a chute and turns to the others. “Just one ride, alright? Then we're off to the North Pole. I promise.”

The siblings share a glance before hopping into the cart. Aang jumps in after him, leaving just enough room behind him for Zuko to fit in, the airbender acting as a buffer between his friends. Holding in a groan, Zuko steps into the cart with much hesitation. Double checking to make sure that they're all settled in, Aang gets ready.

“You know,” Sokka starts to say. “this sounded funny from a side view, but now that I'm at this point..” Sokka looks at the steep drop in front of them. “I'm seriously having second thoOOOOUGHTS!!!” Sokka's scream is joined by Katara's and Zuko's cry of terror and Aang's yell of glee as he topples the weight of the cart forward, sending them plummeting at a tremendous speed.

Sokka and Katara are clutching at each other while Zuko is holding tight to the back of the cart in order to keep himself sitting. Momo is also holding tightly to Aang's wig, which surprisingly has managed to stay on in the high winds. The chute starts to ease up on the steepness and pulls up next to a parallel one, where a cart with a rack of _very_ sharp spears is racing down. The teens look at the cart as they slowly pass by it. Once they pass by it both tracks conjoin together, leaving the spear cart heading right for them. The teens scream as it gets closer, Zuko ducking just in time to avoid being skewered by the spears. Sokka and Katara scream in terror as they see the weapons so close to puncturing them. Aang, the obnoxious child that he was, just smiles with excitement as he leans to the front of the cart.

“I've got this!” he cries.

He rocks the cart from side to side, sending the cart flying out of the chute and onto a roof where gravity continues to pull them downwards. They find themselves rapidly approaching a group of earthbenders who look to be getting a pep talk from their superior.

“Now men, soon you'll be heading off to combat. The front lines!” the leader told them. “It is important that you learn to be prepared for anything.”

Suddenly Aang, Zuko, Sokka, and Katara come in riding the cart between the leader and the men, screams following the cart loaded full of teens. The Earth Kingdom men gasp in surprise as the cart ricochets and continues on. The group's cart breaks through a railing closing off another chute and crosses the track, knocking over one of the supply carts, spilling a load of pumpkins and cucumbers all over the ground. The cart falls into another chute, returning to a moderated path to the ground.

“Aang!” Sokka cries. “Do something dude! Use your airbending or something!”

“Good idea, Sokka!” Aang yells back at him, cutting over the blowing winds. “That will send us riding even faster!”

“Faster is not really what we want right now!” Zuko yells as he clutches the sides of the cart.

Aang doesn't seem to hear him as he sends a blast behind them, upping their speed. They pass by a restaurant and tailor store on the chute, a eating couple and waiter from the restaurant looking out the window while a seamstress from the tailor shop pokes her head out a door. The gaggle of Avatars look at the path in front of them and cry out in alarm as they spot a motionless cart up ahead of them, an earthbender next to it. They let out sighs of relief when the earthbender sends the package downwards, relief that is quickly replaced their alarm as another cart pops up. Before this one can be moved; however, the kid's cart crashes into it, catapulting them into the air high above a lower level of the city. Aang airbends the cart in front of them all, making them all drop back into the cart. They ride down several roofs, leaving behind many a ruined tiles in their wake. They pass through a potter's shop, a silk weaver's shop, and a couple more as well.

They land on a balcony and slide through another house. Emerging on the other side, a bearded cat chases Momo around Aang's wing until the lemur gets the upper hand and pushes it off. Their cart smashes through a parapet and drops vertically out of sight. The cabbage merchant from earlier is currently cuddling a cabbage at what appears to be a replacement cart. Sensing something form above, he walks out from under the roof of his cart to check and gasps in horror as the kid's cart drops on it, smashing the replacement cart to pieces.

“ _MY CABBAGES!!_ ” the merchant cries out.

Cabbages, both intact and not, are sent flying everywhere around the four teens who are in a crumpled heap. Momo calmly floating down without a care.

“You're going to pay for this!”

Guards surround the teens. Aang sits up, his disguise pretty much gone, his youthful face revealed for all the world to see as he stares at the sheepishly.

“Two cabbages if you would please.” is all he can say.

xXx

The four of them had been promptly gathered up and taken to the palace where they were now brought before the king himself. The king is an elderly man, hunched over with many years in his eyes. Two guards flank his sides as the four teens are pushed into a kneeling position. They were all stripped of their outer clothing, so Sokka and Katara were bare of their parkas and Zuko of his hood. His bandages were also removed when the guards went to check his eye for actual damage, leaving his scar visible to everyone.

“Your majesty,” the head guard addresses his king. “these delinquents were arrested for vandalism, traveling under false pretenses, and malicious destruction of cabbages.”

The merchant, who for some reason was brought along, jumps excitedly. “Off with their heads! One for each of my cabbages!”

The guard holds up a hand to silence him. “Quiet, only the king may pass judgment on the guilty. What is your verdict, sire?”

The elderly king grunts and squints his eyes at the four youths before him. He eyes a sweating Sokka, a smiling Katara, seeming to find them unimportant. When his eyes rest on Zuko, his eyes widen just a tad. Zuko's eyes meet his, but he quickly averts his golden gaze. The king lets loose a small chuckle at the fire prince's reaction. His eyes then drift over to the final member of the group's party. His lips briefly twitch into a small grin before it disappears.

“Throw these kids...” he raises his voice as he lifts a hand. Everyone in the room is tense. “a feast!”

All the guards in the room let out gasps while the cabbage merchant grasps his head in dismay at the lack of actual punishment for his precious cabbage's destruction. Sokka's face brightens into a smile, Katara sends a curious look towards Aang who arches his eyebrows in wonder, while Zuko stares at the king in utter confusion at his declaration.

It takes a while, but the room is eventually filled with a table and chairs while servers bring in dish after dish of delectable foods that make Sokka's mouth water. The four teens are sat next to each other; Sokka, Aang, Katara then Zuko. Plates with skinless chicken are set down in front of each teen, while they all look on wary of the situation. The old king walks up until he's standing right between Aang and Sokka's chairs.

“The people in my city have gotten fat from _too many_ feasts.” he says, looking at Aang as he reaches over and grabs the chicken leg that is on his plate and holds it in front of Aang. “So I hope that you find the chicken with no skin to your liking.”

Aang grimaces at the leg before looking up at the king. “Um, sorry, but I only eat vegetables, fruits, and nuts.”

The old man's gaze drift over to the Water Tribe boy. “What about you? I can tell _you_ like meat.” he states as he shoves the leg into Sokka's mouth. Sokka chews on in appreciatively.

“Is it just me,” Katara whispers leaning closer to Aang. “or is this guy's crown just a _little_ bit crooked?” she twirls her index finger next to her temple, indicating insanity.

“So,” the king's voice snaps the teen's attention towards the front where the king settles into a fancy chair. “tell me young bald one. Where are you from exactly?”

Aang laughs nervously as he rubs his head. “Oh, well you see I'm from... Kangaroo Island!”

Sokka and Katara look at him in confusion while Zuko buries his face in his palms.

“Oh, Kangaroo Island, huh?” the king states. “I hear that place is really hopping!”

There is silence for a total of five seconds before Sokka bursts out laughing. He stops his laughter to look at the others, who are looking at him like he's crazy.

“What? That was a pretty funny joke.” he defends his outburst.

“And you, young scarred one.” the king turns his gaze towards Zuko, who straightens his back. “Where do you hail from? Because you look mighty like those from the Fire Nation, you see?”

Zuko subdues a flinch as he feels the gazes of the two Water Tribe siblings on him as well. “I'm from an Earth Kingdom colony.”

“I see, any particular reason why you left?” the old man inquires.

Zuko looks to the side. “Mother disappeared, father not ideal to live with, sister wants me dead. I don't see why I would have _stayed_.”

A look enters the old man's eyes, but no one catches it as the old man yawns and stretches his arms. “Well, all these backstories and puns are making me tired.” he leans into his left as he seems to reach for something. “Looks like it's time to hit the hay!” with a quick flick of his wrist he hurls something at both Aang and Zuko.

Aang nearly tumbles backwards out of his chair as he catches what he sees is a chicken leg in an airball. Zuko is able to keep himself from tumbling backwards as he snaps his arm out and clenches his fist around his own chicken leg; however, since he was startled and already on high nerves, he wasn't able to stop himself from burning the leg to an inedible lump of coal. The guards in the room let out gasps of surprise.

“We seem to have two very special guests in our presence.” the king gestures towards Aang and Zuko. “The Avatar and the Fire Nation prince!” he declares as he stands up.

Mouth closing after falling open in shock, Aang quickly shoves his hands behind him while Zuko drops the burnt chicken leg and shoves his hands into his underarms. The king chuckles as he settles back down in his seat. Momo is still eating in the middle of the table like nothing is wrong.

“Now, what do you have to say for yourselves, Mr. Pippinpaddleopsicopolis?”

Aang stands up while throwing his hands into the air. “Alright, okay. You caught me. I'm the Avatar.”

 **Well, one of them, at least.** The four teens couldn't help but think.

“Doing my Avatar thing, no _evil_ firebenders here.” he says, stretching the word 'evil'. “Everything seems to be in order.” he pulls up Sokka and Katara by their arms while Zuko stands up on his own. “Good work everyone! Love each other, respect all life, and don't run with those spears.” he says as they all walk backwards towards the entrance. “We'll see you on our next visit!”

They quickly turn to leave, only to be met with crossed spears denying them exit. Katara turns around to glare at the king in anger.

“You can't keep us here against our will! Let us leave!” she yells accusingly.

The king questioningly picks up a leaf from his plate and holding it up. “Lettuce leaf?” he mockingly asks before taking a bite out of said leaf.

The four teens huddle close together as Sokka whispers. “We are in _serious_ trouble! This guy is completely _nuts_!”

“Tomorrow,” the king begins, drawing their attention back onto him. “the Avatar will face three deadly challenges.” he leans back in his chair. “But for now, the guards will show you four to your chamber.”

The chamberlain leans close to the king to whisper. “Um, my liege, are you talking about the good chamber or the bad one?”

The king turns towards the man. “The newly refurbished chamber.” he clarifies.

“Um.. which one are we talking about?” the chamberlain asks, completely confused.

“The one that used to be the bad chamber, until the recent refurbishing, that is. Of course, we've been calling it the new chamber, but we really should figure out a better labeling system.” he looks up as the guards push the kids with their spears. “Take them to the refurbished chamber that was once bad!” he proclaims in a commanding tone.

As their taken from the main room and lead downwards, they eventually come across a plain wall. One of the guards thrusts his arms away from each other and a crack shoots down the wall before splitting open to reveal a wonderfully designed room. The four teens are then shoved harshly inside, Momo calmly perching on Zuko's shoulder. The entryway is immediately bent closed behind them. They take the time to look around at their 'prison' to find it looks more like a lavish room. With fancy drapery hanging from the ceiling to pretty lanterns decorating the walls. Four beds lay in a circle in the middle of the room. The lemur leaves Zuko's shoulder to curl up on one of the beds.

“ _This_ is a prison cell? But it looks too nice to be one.” Katara observes.

“Well, he did say it was newly refurbished, didn't he?” Aang returns.

“Hey! Nice or not, we're prisoners. We need to get out of here.” Sokka speaks up.

“Maybe there's a way out?” Katara says with an air of worry.

“The air vents!” Aang points at said air vent. Only they're too small for them.

Sokka seems to feel the need to explain this. “Um, Aang. I don't know if you've noticed, but we're too big to fit in there.”

“ _We_ are,” Aang says, while turning his head back towards the beds. “But _Momo_ isn't.”

The eager airbender picks up his little furry friend and brings a stool over to get a better reach on the vent. He tries to shove the poor creature into the tube, but with he's extended belly he is unable to fit like he normally would have.

“Come on boy! Go get Appa!” Aang says encouragingly.

Unfortunately, he doesn't get anywhere and gives up, leaving the poor creature to try and get out himself. Aang sits down on the stool he had procured and sighs.

“So, how was Appa going to break us out of here anyways?” Sokka asks from his spot on a bed.

“Appa is a ten-ton flying bison.” Aang fills in. “I'm sure he could have thought of something.”

“Even if Momo could get to him, there's no way Appa could reach us from here.” Zuko's voice cuts through the room. He's sitting on a bed with his back to the others while he's examining the room.

Everyone looks over at him. “Oh really?” Katara asks with a little bit of snark. “And why not?”

“Well, we're too far down.” Zuko points at the air vents. “The fact that the vents are from pipes that small and they are positioned at such an angle that if we were close to the surface we would be able to see at least a little bit of light. But since we can't, we are further down then we think. They wouldn't have made the pipes turn or take a sudden 90 degree angle since that would make it difficult to clean to ensure that air can still pass through.” Zuko explains.

“So?” Sokka inquires annoyingly.

“Basically, we're too far down for Appa to just bust through the walls to rescue us.” Zuko sums up. “The walls are too thick to break with airbending.”

“Well, what are we supposed to do?” Katara demands, looking at their resident firebender. “Just sit here and let Aang do this crazy king's challenges?”

“There's nothing else we can do!” Zuko stands up in frustration. “The only way out of here is with an earthbender's help! And, if you hadn't noticed, none of us know how to earthbend!”

“Well, maybe we should have gone looking for our Earth piece before coming here!” Katara yells.

“We were told not to! You know that!” Zuko responds. “They would have been useless at the poles because there's no earth for them to bend there!”

“'We were told not to'. What an odd response.” Katara grumbles, turning sharply to her brother. “Since when do we just listen to the advice of long dead Avatars? We were perfectly happy at home!”

“Not to disagree with you on listening to advice from ghosts or anything,” Sokka interjects. “but _you_ were the one who wanted to leave so you could learn proper waterbending. I wouldn't say you were _perfectly happy_ , just saying.”

Katara shoots a small glare in his direction.

“Hey, I'm just saying. You were the one who _banished yourself_ because you wanted to go to the North Pole.” he stands up to be next to his sister. “But how about we talk about the fact that we just listened to people who have all been dead for decades. We all get visions upon meeting each other, we get a little trip to what was supposed to be the spirit world and then get told we're all the Avatar. And we were just supposed to BELIEVE that?” he questions, throwing his hands up looking directly at Zuko.

“Guys, let's not fight or argue!” Aang tries to break up the growing argument.

“No, Aang.” Zuko shakes his head. “I think we need to talk about this, or else it will simmer and grow until it eventually bursts. We need to get these feelings out now.”

“But-.” Aang tries to protest.

“I agree with princey here.” Sokka nods, looking at the airbender. “We can't just run and ignore this, Aang. It will start to affect our decisions in our day-to-day lives until we reach our breaking point and at that point a lot more than people's feelings will be hurt.”

Aang didn't seem to agree, but he seem to understand he couldn't stop this. He took a step back, indicating he wanted no part in this argument. Sokka and Katara stand next to each other facing against Zuko.

“Before that day you came to the South Pole I _hated_ the Fire Nation for what they did to our people.” Sokka states firmly. “Then you come along, and I gave you the benefit of the doubt because you didn't come to our shores like a typical raid would have happened. I wanted to be suspicious of you, _I wanted to_ , but it was like something buried inside my head was telling me _not to_. It frustrates me so much every time I think about it! You come spouting off nonsense about how you're searching for the Avatar because you wanted to ask him a _question_?”

Zuko winces at how pathetic that sounds when phrased that way.

“In my head, I put a complete stranger in your position, saying the same thing. And I _never believe it_. For some reason, coming from you I felt no reason _not to believe you_.” Sokka throws his hands in the air in frustration. “I want to smack myself for believing you so quickly that we not only revealed that Aang was in fact the Avatar, but that my sister was the only remaining waterbender in our village! If you had been lying I would never have seen Katara again! I would have broken my promise to my dad to keep her safe!” he grits his teeth. “I don't understand how a few silly visions not only made me trust you with my sister's secret, but also in **boarding your ship**! I've never believed in the spirit world until then! Under normal circumstances I would have denied what happened in that tent until my face turned blue! But **no** , I believed you, I believed people long dead, and I pushed aside my common sense! For meat's sake, why would Katara and I ever believe that we were some how related to Avatar Kuruk just because our Gran-Gran came from the North Pole!? Because he told us himself?! I don't think so! I had never even shown any slight inkling for bending before like Katara did growing up, why in the name of all precious meats would I believe that I'm part of an Avatar set?! For all we know that was some sort of hallucinogenic that you sneaked into the room for us to breathe in so we would believe anything you told us!”

Zuko eyes narrow. “Okay first of all, I can't explain why you trusted me so easily, I thought you were waiting to slit my throat when I had my guards down because that would allow you to get rid of one of your most hated enemies!” Katara and Sokka flinch at the idea of slitting Zuko's throat. “As for the whole hallucinogenic drug idea, it's not applicable to our situation in that tent. If I had sneaked a drug inside, we ALL would have been affected at the SAME time. Not one by one! Not to mention I doubt we all would have had the same hallucinations. Also, you're the Spirit piece, why WOULDN'T you believe a spirit, especially one of a previous Avatar?”

“I've never held much faith in the spirits when the oh so beloved spirits of my people weren't able to save any of our waterbenders when the Fire Nation took them away almost eight decades ago. I just considered Katara to be a waterbender by pure dumb luck! I never thought it had anything to do with spirits!” he hugs his sister and kisses her cheek. “No offense, little sister.”

Katara's look of anger at Sokka's remark about her bending fades once he kisses her. “None taken, big brother.” she turns her blue eyes back towards Zuko. “For so long I hated the Fire Nation, I still do. But when the Fire Nation took our mother away from us five years ago? I began to _despise_ them. They killed her, and didn't even have the decency to leave us her body to bury! So when you arrived in the village, I was ready to hate you and not believe a word you said. I was angry that Sokka even let you in, but while Sokka can be dense sometimes, he's not stupid in regards to something like that. So I trusted his decision in that situation. But then those stupid visions come along and suddenly I can't find any hate in my heart for you! We get pulled into the spirit world and get visited by the four previous Avatars and are just supposed to take their word for the truth? One chat later, an apology from you, and suddenly we're all friends and already plotting a way to escape your crew and uncle and begin to make our way to the North Pole? Because of some convoluted reason as to why we can't learn a different element from someone other than each other? We can't learn fire unless you show us? Only I can teach you guys waterbending? Sokka is the one who will teach us about the spiritual side of our duty? I understand Aang being the only one who can teach us air but _come on_!”

Aang flinches as her voice raises.

“I barely have any waterbending training! Not to mention the fact that, unlike the rest of us who at least know how to use the piece we were given, Sokka has _no idea_ how to use his fragment of the Avatar Soul! We didn't even get a real explanation as to WHY we can only learn the elements and spiritual side from each other! We just have to trust the word of people, who have been dead for CENTURIES, that _you_ ,” she hisses, jutting a finger in Zuko's direction. “aren't doing this so you can become a fully realized Avatar so you can return home to your palace and eventually become Firelord and help the Fire Nation win the war! We have to trust that you won't sell us out, betray us, take advantage of us, or even lead us off track! And what if all of this wasn't real?” she throws her hands in the air questioningly. “What if we _weren't_ all Avatars and Aang really was the only Avatar? What if he couldn't give you an explanation as to why you waterbent when you got burned? Would it be the same situation? Would you have joined us to the North Pole teaching Aang to master the four elements so he could defeat the Firelord and the Fire Nation? You would be a traitor to your people, and it would be of your own choice!”

Zuko seem to be barely holding onto his anger. “Okay first of all, in case you forgot, I lost my mother too, literally a year after you did! At least your father still loves you! The entire reason my mother is gone is because she had to protect me _from my own_ father!As for the bullshit explanation we got on learning the elements? You think they made any more sense to me than they did to you? You think I'm not just as confused as you on this? It's not like we had books on how to act in this kind of situation because there never HAS been this kind of situation before! You think I automatically thought that you were over your hatred of me? I've been expecting some kind of death threat since we started this journey because I didn't think any of you actually trusted me!”

Aang's face takes on a look of horror at the idea of threaten to kill anybody, while Sokka and Katara look a little bit queasy.

“As for us learning how to master our fragment you think I'm not worried about Sokka learning his? I've been searching through all of the books and scrolls that I collected over the last three years to see if any of it could be useful to him! I want him to learn this more for himself than for any selfish reason you could think up for me!” Zuko wants to snap when he sees them look a little guilty at that comment, but he manages to refrain. “As for me _betraying_ you, that is the last thing you need to worry about! Even if I wasn't on your side, I sure as hell wouldn't be on the Firelord's side! If my plan was to train until I became a fully realized Avatar, it wouldn't matter if I went home! My father would either have me locked away or killed! As for being Firelord, if our secret ever becomes public I would NEVER be allowed on the throne! When the first Firelord was crowned, there was a clause in the official document that gave the new royal family the right to rule the Fire Nation, as well in any other nation. In order to keep the peace, and to prevent any bias against one nation, no Avatar is allowed to be Firelord, Earth King, Head Monk, or leader of either the Northern or Southern Water Tribes, or any kind of government figurehead. Add that to the fact that my only way to come home would be to return with the Avatar, I will _never_ be able to wear the crown, so you don't have to worry your brains over that fact. My _father_ ,” Zuko spits out the word like one would say bile. “has never had any intentions of letting me come home. He sent me on a fool's errand, trying to find someone who hadn't been seen since the start of this Agni forsaken war! Combine that with the fact that the reason I got banished in the first place was for **speaking out of turn** like a child would at a dinner table, my father would rather hire mercenaries to kill me off than let me go back home! I would be signing my own death warrant if I was ever stupid enough to believe that the Firelord wanted me back home! If that were true he would have asked me back, Avatar or no Avatar.”

Aang looks about ready to cry at this point. Momo had managed to get out of the air vent some time ago and is now perching in Aang's arms.

“If the situation was different, and Aang couldn't give me a reason as to why I waterbent as a child, I still wouldn't be allowed home, or on the throne! A Firelord who can bend water? Unheard of! I can't say whether or not I would have joined you on your journey, but I wouldn't have turned you in at the very least! And for your comment about being a traitor, judging by what Roku and the others told us, I became one the moment I was born! I'm sorry okay!” Zuko was holding back tears at this point. “I'm sorry you don't understand why you acted the way you did! I'm sorry for what happened to your mother, but you can't hold me accountable for that! I'm not the one who took her life away!”

_**SMACK!** _

Zuko's sun spun eyes widen at the pain in his cheek. He slowly raises a hand to the left side of his face, where Katara had smacked him in her rage. He pulls his hand away when he feels something wet and sees a little bit of blood on his finger tips. Glancing down at the hand used, Zuko sees that Katara had used some unconscious bending and had coated the palm of her hand in a light sheen of ice, just hard enough to leave a mark. Looking over at the sound of a sob, Zuko sees that Aang is full out crying now, clutching Momo in his arms. Turning his gaze towards the two remaining people in the room, he examines their reactions.

Sokka's face is of pure shock and surprise, his right arm outstretched as if he had tried to stop his sister from committing the action she had just done. The young warrior's eyes kept glancing between his little sister and Zuko himself as if he's suddenly not sure what side he's on anymore.

Katara's face is a mixture of many things: shock, anger, fear, surprise. The ice from her hand is already melting, her entire arm trembling. Most likely from the shock of what she had just done. Her wide eyes snap between her hand and the cheek she slapped it with, as if she can't believe she had actually done that.

Zuko comes to a conclusion right there. If the majority of the party feels so strongly about this, then he won't strive to make them uncomfortable. He'll make sure that they all get out of this.

“I see.” he mumbles as he drops his hand from his cheek and lowers his gaze towards the floor. “Once we get out of Omashu, we'll go our separate ways. You can head to the North Pole and learn waterbending. You can take all the scrolls and books you need from my stash. Once you finish there and leave to find the Earth piece, I'll look for you so I can teach you firebending so you can beat the Fire Nation. I won't bother you until then, or afterwards.”

The three of them look like they desperately want to say something, but Zuko doesn't give them an opening to say it.

“It would be best if we go to sleep. Aang will need his rest for tomorrow.” with that said, Zuko walks over to the bed farthest from them and lays on it, his back facing them.

Katara looks like she's about to say something, but Sokka puts a hand on her shoulder and shakes his head. Katara looks up at him with wide watery eyes, asking him to tell her she didn't do what she just did. Sokka is only able to shake his head again before giving her a hug. When he lets go he walks over to one of the beds and keeps his back to Zuko. Katara looks over to Aang, who is wiping his eyes of tears. When his gaze catches hers, his gray eyes look away and he goes to claim another bed. Holding back a sob, Katara walks over to the only remaining bed and lays down.

Sleep does not come quickly for anyone in the chamber that night.

xXx

Snoring echoes through the chamber as the doorway opens up, startling Aang out of his uneasy sleep. He snaps up quickly, taking a look towards his friends. His gray eyes widen when he finds all three beds empty.

“Sokka? Katara?” he twists all the way around to look at the fourth bed. “Zuko?” he turns back towards the guard at the doorway. “Where are my friends? What have you done with them!?” he demands.

“The king will release them if you complete your challenges.” the guard extends a hand. “Your staff if you will.”

Aang lifts his staff with his foot, grabs it, and spins it around, places it upright next to him, before tossing it into the guard's hand. Once the guard has his staff, another guard comes in and they both escort him to the large throne room.

“First order of business, Avatar.” the king says seriously before he spreads his arms, showing off his royal purple outfit. “What do you think of my new outfit? Give me your honest opinion.” he gets no response as Aang blankly stares at him. “I'm waiting.”

Scratching his head, Aang replies. “It's fine... I guess.”

“Excellent!” the king claps his hands excitedly. “You passed the first test!”

Aang's face brightens. “Really?”

“Well, not one of the deadly ones. The real ones are a bit more... challenging.”

Sudden feelings of anger sprout from Aang's heart accompanied by frustration as he uses a burst of air, surprising his guards. He quickly closes the distance between him and the king, getting into his personal space.

“I don't have time to play your crazy games!” he tells the old man firmly. “Give me my friends! _All_ of them! We are leaving!”

The king lets out a chuckle. “Well, can't say I'm surprised at you refusing my challenges.” to their left a the wall opens up to show Sokka and Katara being held by guards. “So, I'm going to give your friends some souvenirs.”

Aang looks over at his friends as a guard grabs her right hand and slides a green ring over her finger. Looking over at Sokka, the guard slips a blue band onto Sokka's upper right arm.

“Those delightful pieces of jewelry are pure jennamite, also known by the name of creeping crystal. It's a crystal that's known for it's remarkably fast growth. By nightfall they'll be completely covered in the stuff. Only an earthbender can remove them.” the king turns to Aang with a grin. “I'll remove them, but _only_ if you cooperate with the challenges.”

“Ahh!” Sokka cries out. “It's already creeping!” surely enough, the crystal band and ring had already starting growing.

The airbender's eyes widen in realization.

“Wait! Where's Zuko! He's my friend too!” Aang yells. “What did you do with him?!” Sokka and Katara's eyes widen as well when they didn't see the fourth member of their group.

“Our dear prince?” the king replies. “Oh I had to get him specially fitted for some bonds. Can't have him firebending and burning my guards. Besides, why do you care? I heard quite a bit of yelling in your chamber last night.”

Three pairs of eyes widen in shock.

“I didn't get the exact wording, but I understand your two Water Tribe friends aren't all that friendly with him at the moment. After all, your lady friend did give him a harsh slap.”

Katara flinches at the mention.

“Oh, by the way, young lady.” the king turns to Katara. “You left quite the bruise on the dear boy. You should be proud. Not many people can say they've injured the prince of the Fire Nation so well without retaliation of some kind. I do hope that hitting him made you feel better. Don't worry, when all of this is said and done, you won't have to worry about seeing him again. I have plans to deliver that boy to an old friend. He'll certainly enjoy his company.”

Sokka, Aang and Katara look at the old man in horror. Katara had tears streaming down her face as she imagined what kind of horrors Zuko will be subjected to once the challenges were done. Sokka; however, wanted to feel sick at what he thought the old man was implying. He had no intentions on asking to see if his thoughts were right. Nope, he'll deny it until the hippo-cows come home. Aang, on the other hand, was slowly getting angrier and angrier. _Nobody_ messes with his family!

“Ah! There he is now!” the king gestures behind them and they all turn.

Their eyes couldn't get any bigger.

Zuko's hands were encased in iron casings which not only prevents him from firebending, but from even extending his fingers. His wrists were shackled together leaving only 10 inches of chain between them. His wrist shackles were attached to a chain around his waist, with only enough length for him to extend his arms just short of shoulder height. His feet were not chained, but his boots had been removed and replaced with shoes with metal bands, preventing him from firebending with his feet lest he desires to cover them with blisters. It looks like the king's guards took no chances with his potential as a firebender. The lower half of his face was covered by a metal mask of some sort, small holes allowing for air to breath. The guard next to him takes a magenta band and wraps it around his neck, creating a collar of the creeping crystal.

“Zuko!” Aang cries. “Are you alright?!”

Zuko is silent for a few moments before he nods jerkingly.

Aang turns towards the king. “He's not an animal! Take that face thing off!”

“I'd like to, but he spat a fireball at one of my guards earlier. This is his punishment. I can't just let him burn my guards.” the king says, nonchalantly.

“Take it off!” Aang demands.

The king looks down at Aang's angry eyes before he grins. “How about this? If you complete the first challenge, _and_ he shows good behavior, I'll have the face mask removed. Deal?” he holds out his wrinkly hand towards Aang.

The airbender doesn't even hesitate in shaking the old man's hand. “Deal. I'll do your stupid tests.”

“Excellent!” the king smiles his gap toothed smile.

The old king lead the two Water Tribe siblings, worried airbender, a chained firebender as well as two of his guards down even further than the chambers to a cave filled with stalagmites and stalactites. In the middle of the cave is a waterfall, and within said waterfall is a ladder. Hanging from a rope at the top of the ladder is a key. Aang jumps down onto a flat rock near the base of the waterfall. By this time Katara's jennamite ring has already expanded to engulf part of her right forearm. Sokka's band has covered all of his right arm except for his hand. Zuko's collar thankfully only seems interested in growing downwards for now and has only covered both of his shoulders.

“It seems that I misplaced my lunch box key and I'm starving!” the king points towards the inside of the water. “Oh! There it is! Now how did it get in there? Would you be a good sport and get it for me?”

Aang doesn't waste a moment and airbends himself to the base of the fall and does a straight plunge into the waterfall. He manages to climb up the rock face and reach the base of the ladder before his air bonus runs out and he just barely manages to grab hold of one of the rungs. He reaches upward slowly with his other hand to grab another rung, but the torrent of water pushes him down and out. He barely manages to catch himself between two stalagmites, letting out a gust of air when he manages to stop just before a third stalagmite could pierce him _there_. He lets out a small shiver at the thought.

“Oh my! Climbing up the ladder?!” the king says sarcastically. “I dare say no one has tried doing _that_ before!”

Behind the king, with the guards still behind them, Sokka slowly sidestep his way towards Zuko. The oldest of their group doesn't even look up as he get closer.

“Zuko..?” Sokka whispers. “Are you okay?”

At Sokka's voice, Zuko seem to jerk into awareness. His golden eyes drift over to glance at Sokka before looking away. His bangs did a good job at hiding his eyes, but Sokka still saw a tear fall from his left eye.

“Did.. did they hurt you at all?” he asks softly.

Zuko doesn't respond for some time, long enough that Sokka thinks he's not going to answer, but the taller boy gives a small shake of the head.

“They... they grabbed me earlier then they did with you two.” Zuko mumbles. “I was stunned long enough that I only started retaliating when we had left the chamber. I only burned that one guard out of surprise, not on purpose. I swear.”

The way he says that last bit makes Sokka feel incredibly guilty. They had made Zuko feel so alone in the last twenty-four hours that he thinks he needs to show that he truly wasn't a bad person. Wanting to fix that, Sokka places his left hand on Zuko's shoulder, making the prince look at him in surprise.

“Zuko, I'm sorry. I was furious with my emotions and took it out on you. I felt that trusting you so easily was a betrayal to my own father. I didn't even think about how all of this would affect you. I was worried that I was leading my sister into a danger I couldn't save her from. I forgot to remember that you're just as human as the rest of us.”

Although it was rather difficult to do with a crystallized arm and shoulders, Sokka gives Zuko the best hug he can to show his words were honest. To say that Zuko was shocked would be a severe understatement.

“I don't want you to leave the group, Zuko.” Sokka whispers. “I really don't. Even if Katara does, Aang and I won't let you leave. We started this journey together, and we're going to finish it the same way. We can't do this without you anymore than we can without our Earth piece.” he pulls away to look directly at Zuko. “Once we're both crystal free and you're out of the shackles I'm gonna give you a proper hug!”

Zuko can only give a small nod before a loud _'THUNK'_ has both of them turning to look above the king's head, where a rock has been embedded into the wall. Dangling above the king's head in a chain with a key hanging at the end.

“There! I hope you enjoy your lunch!” Aang's voice rings out across the cavern. “Now remove that mouth piece from my friend immediately!”

The king seems rather amused. “Well, since you did complete the challenge and he behaved rather nicely. As agreed, the face mask shall be removed.” he turns to look back towards Zuko and snaps his fingers.

The guard closest to Zuko takes a key from his waist just as Aang lands back on the balcony. Zuko stays as still as he possibly can as the guard inserts the key. A small _'ca-chunk'_ and the entire thing loosens up. The guard grabs the front and lifts it over the teen's head, stepping back once it is fully removed. Zuko shakes his head a little, enjoying the cool air on his skin.

“See, young lady.” the king addresses Katara. “I told you that you left a pretty bruise. You should feel proud!”

The king turns away before he can see the despair that overcomes Katara's face at the mention of feeling proud for what she did. She does not even look at Zuko's cheek.

“Now,” the king turns back to Aang. “you still have two more challenges. For the next one, I need you to fetch my pet Flopsie!”

Aang groans at the prospect of this not being over yet, but he won't let his friends down. No way.

xXx

The king leads them to another room with a large sunken enclosure. On a rock sits a cute little long eared bunny.

Aang lands just behind the cute little critter. “I found him! Now what?” Aang calls up to the king.

“Bring him up to me!” the king calls. “Daddy wants a kiss from Flopsie!”

“Come here, little Flopsie!” Aang says softly as to not startle the little guy.

Suddenly a large goat gorilla jumps down behind Aang and startles the little bunny into running away. Aang yelps and gives chase.

“Wait! Flopsie!” Aang cries.

While that is happening, Katara is feeling extremely guilty. The feeling started when she first saw Zuko in his shackles, and it grew ten sizes when she saw the bruise she had left on his cheek. When she watched her brother apologize to Zuko during the first challenge she thought he was crazy, but as she eavesdropped on what he was saying, she realized he was right. Upon that realization, she knew she had to set things right. She carefully walks over to Zuko, which is rather difficult since the jennamite has now long since encased her upper body and has now reached the middle of her legs. Sokka's has reached about a foot further than hers, while Zuko's seems to have started to creep up the back of his head. Speaking of their firebender, he looks rather nervous as she approaches, and it breaks her heart to know that she is the reason he is so nervous, and possibly afraid?

“Zuko...” she begins softly, trying to hold it together. “I was wrong to do what I did. I should never have hit you, especially since you were right.”

Zuko's eyes widen as she admits she was wrong.

“You weren't the one who killed my mother, you were not part of the raid that was responsible, and I shouldn't have tried blaming you like you were. I've spent so long hating the Fire Nation for all they've taken from my people. Taking our waterbenders, raiding our city till it was but a shadow of it's former self, taking all hope my people have ever known. When I saw your ship I was ready to hate you, I felt like nothing could change my mind, but after those visions... it felt like you were family. I couldn't feel anger towards you for what the Fire Nation did anymore than I could at my brother. I think I understand why I felt this as well.”

Zuko doesn't say a word and waits for her to continue.

“This... bond that we share... it connects us. Not just holders of the fragments, but as family... And I realize... that I don't want you to leave!” she says, looking up at Zuko with tears in her eyes. “Please, don't leave us. I can't handle losing anymore of my family.” her ocean eyes stare deep into his sun filled ones. “Once we're out of these confinements, I'll show you how honest I'm being right now.... but please...” she lets out a small sob. “promise me you won't leave!”

Zuko stares at her in shock for so long that Katara actually thinks that he won't answer, but then a few tears leave his own eyes and he whispers. “I promise.”

The two of them are startled when Aang jumps up behind them, looking at his three friends. “Are you three doing alright?”

Sokka shrugs. “Other than the crystals using my body as a jungle gym? Doing great!” then a crystal on Sokka's left grows taller, causing him to fall over. “Oh come on!”

While two guards help to stand Sokka on his feet, Aang walks over to the king, who is rubbing his pet's belly-wait the _goat gorilla_ was Flopsie?! Now they _know_ the king is crazy. The king looks up as Aang approaches.

“Come on. I'm ready for the final challenge.”

The king gives an evil laugh that sends shivers down the teen's spines.

xXx

The last place they are lead to is an earthbending arena. Aang and the king are standing on the main balcony, while Sokka, Katara and Zuko are standing on the adjacent balcony to their left. At this point the three crystallized teens only have their faces left uncovered.

“I don't think we need babysitters anymore.” the king looks at the guards near the Water Tribe siblings and the Fire Nation prince. “You may leave.”

“But Your Majesty!” one guard cries.

“Do you think I can't handle a bunch of teens?” the king then gives the guard the Lazy Eye.

“N-no, your Highness.” the guard backs off.

“Just earthbend the doorways close.” the king tells them. “They can't leave, and it's not like they can bend their legs to jump either.”

The guards, although hesitate, do as the king orders. The elder man then turns towards Aang.

“Your final test is a dual.” the king states. “And since I'm feeling in such a good mood, I'll let you choose your opponent.”

Two tough looking men come out to stand to the king's left and right. Aang looks at them, feeling really nervous all of a sudden.

“Just point and choose.” the king tells him.

“So, you're saying I can point to any of the guys in front of me, and that's who I get to fight?” Aang asks, suddenly feeling clever.

The king looks at him ominously. “Choose wisely.”

“Okay... then I...” Aang holds up a hand as he looks at the men before him. “choose..” he makes his choice. “You!” he declares, pointing at the elderly king.

The old man grins as the other two men back out and leave. “Wrong. Choice!”

The entrance behind him is earthbent shut as the old man suddenly straightens his back, removing most of the hunch and giving him more height. As he reaches his full height, he sheds his outer robe, showing that he may be old, but he is well built for one. He slams his foot down and earthbends Aang off the balcony, sending him flying into the arena. The king jumps right after him and laughs.

“You thought that because I was old I was nothing more then a frail old man. But you will soon understand that I am the most powerful earthbender you will ever see!”

“Never mind, I want to fight that guy who had the axe!” Aang calls out.

“Sorry, kid. I don't allow take-backsies in my kingdom. I do think you might need this though!” he slams his foot down, which sends Aang's staff, which had been propped up behind Sokka and Katara, flying to Aang who catches it easily.

“Be careful, Aang!” Katara calls out.

Once Aang has his staff, the buff old man bends several rocks at Aang, who just jumps and evades the attacks. When he lands the king gives off a small chuckle.

“Typical moves of an airbender. Avoid and evade.” he shacks his head before he launches another attack. “I had hoped you, as the Avatar, would be less predictable!”

The king bends up some more boulders that he shoots off towards Aang, who avoids as usual. Aang's face is covered in sweat, not from being exhausted–with how _he_ trained as an Air Nomad no way!–but from his nerves. This old man was nothing like he had thought. Even the elders could only move this fast with airbending, whereas this man is doing well without it! Even taking bending into consideration, few people of old age rarely move this well without feeling some pain. Only with taking good care of their body from their youth forwards can most people avoid the stresses of old age. This man must have been _really_ vigorous with his training if he is this physically well, and he's got to be at least, what? _In his 80's_?

“Don't you have any surprises for me?” the king asks as Aang once again evades without striking back. “Sooner or later you'll have to hit back.”

“Come on, Aang!” Sokka cries out to him. “Show this old man what a- _the_ Avatar can do!!” he manages to disguise his word stumble as a cough, though the king doesn't seem to notice.

The man slams his foot down, which sends an earthquake like ripple through the ground which sends Aang off balance. To fix this, Aang shoots into the air and keeps himself there by rapidly spinning his staff to keep himself elevated above his opponent. The king sends a boulder into the ceiling, causing rocks to rain down on Aang, knocking him down from the air. He decides to charge the king, but the man just rapid hits him with multiple rocks, which send him flying backwards onto the pile of rocks that the previous attack had created.

“I think you'll need to be more creative than that!” the king tells him mockingly.

Slowly losing his patience, Aang creates an air scooter and charges forward on it before sending a huge blast of wind towards the elder man. The man pulls up a stone barrier to block it, perfectly safe behind the wall of rock. After the attack fades he peeks his head out from behind the wall.

“Did someone leave the windows open? I think it's little drafty in here.” he puts on a 'serious' face as he stares at Aang. “Are you hoping I'll catch a cold?”

The king bends some pillars in Aang's path, causing him to lose his scooter. He jumps using a boost and leaps backwards, sending him at least halfway across the arena.

“How do you plan to hit me from way over there?” the king asks.

“You can do this, Aang!” Zuko cries out.

Aang looks up in surprise at his Fire Nation friend, not expecting him to give verbal support. He lets a small smile show on his face before he replaces it with a serious expression as he looks back towards the elder king.

Aang charges forward on foot again, using airbending to accelerate but the king softens the arena floor, leaving him sunk to the waist. The king bends to stones to collide on the spot but Aang pops out of the top of them when they meet. Anger now fully visible on his face, he bends the slab the king is standing on all the way to the back of the arena. The king bends the largest boulder yet to come at Aang from behind but he does an air-assisted back flip over it. The king makes more bending moves, cracking the floors and walls of the arena, tearing out a huge chunk of the wall and balcony they had been standing on. Seeing what is coming, Aang gasps and runs in tight circles, conjuring a tornado. When the king flings the huge hunk of the wall at Aang, it is caught in the tornado and instantly whips around right back at the king. The king bends it to sand before it can smash him, but before he can recover, Aang attacks from the top of the tornado, landing at the king's feet with his staff poised to strike.

The king's arms are raised as if surrendering, which causes Aang to smirk in victory. The king chuckles before his eyes look upwards. Confused, Aang looks at the king before a small pebble falls on Aang's head, causing him to look up. His jaw drops as he sees the large boulder suspended over the both of them. The old man relaxes as he lets out a small chuckle.

“Well done, Avatar. You fight with much fire in your heart.” he tosses the boulder off to the side before he falls backwards into the floor, leaving a bodily imprint.

Aang let's out a 'huh?' at the odd bending before before he looks up towards the balcony where the king pops up next to his three friends. He quickly jumps up to join them.

“You've passed all my tests. Now, you must answer one question.” the king tells him.

“That's not fair!” Aang cries at him. “You said you'd release the three of my friends if I passed your tests!”

“Oh, but what's the point of tests if you don't ever learn anything, hmm?” the king tells him.

“Oh come on!” Aang groans.

“Answer this one question, and I'll let you and your companions go.” the king explains.

Aang sighs before reluctantly nodding.

“What...” the king starts. “.. is my name?”

Aang's jaw hits the floor.

“From the looks of your friends, I'd say you only have a few minutes.” the king states, looking at the three crystallized teens, as he walks away.

Aang turns to his three friends and looks on in horror.

“How in the name of sky bison am I suppose to know his name?!” he asks, wishing for a moment that he had hair so he could pull at it.

“Think about the challenges, it must be a riddle of some kind!” Katara tells him.

“I've got it!” Sokka exclaims. The others look at him expectantly. “He's an earthbender, right? Rocky! You know, because he bends rocks?”

“We're going to keep working on it, but that is a good back-up.” Katara tells him.

“Okay, going back to the challenges.” Aang says. “I nabbed a key from a waterfall, I got him his pet which wasn't the animal I originally thought, and I had a duel.”

“And what did you learn?” Zuko asks.

“Well, everything was different than what I was expecting.” Aang states softly.

“And?” Katara asks anxiously as the jennamite grows more.

“Well, they weren't straight forward.” Aang explains. “To solve each one, I had to take a different way of going about it compared to how I normally would have handled it.”

“You know?” Zuko says softly. “The way the old man dealt with the challenges remind me of my uncle, somehow.”

“Really?” Aang asks.

“Yeah, the odd way he goes about things. Having the answer being unconventional in order to make me have to think in order to find it.” Zuko bit his lip lightly. “I can't help but be reminded of my uncle when it comes to this guy.”

Aang smiles. “I know his name.”

The king comes back around. “You ready to go back to the chamber to give your answer?” he asks.

Aang nods. “Yeah. I know your name.”

“Well, that's nice. Let's head back. My guards will take our prince friend back to his chamber.” the king states.

The four teens freeze in their tracks. “What are you talking about?” Aang asks. “Our deal said that you would release ALL of my friends!”

“Actually, I never said that I would released him. I did tell you I have plans to deliver him to an old friend.” the old man explains.

“What!” Aang, Sokka, and Katara cry. Zuko seems to be falling into shock.

“I only planned to let the two Water Tribe members go. I can't just let the Fire Nation prince go traversing around the Earth Kingdom.” he explains.

“But he's my friend!” Aang cries. “He wouldn't hurt me!”

“Unfortunately, I can't take that chance. You're the Avatar, the world needs you.” the king says.

“The world needs _him_ just as much as Aang!” Katara shouts.

“To what? Take the throne from his father?” the old man chuckles. “Not many people would go for that, young lady.”

“I won't let you take him!” Aang tells him.

“I don't see any reason why I can't.” the elder says. “Don't worry, it's not like he's going anywhere that will hurt him or anything. Just somewhere where he's not a threat to you.”

The noise seem to fade from the ears of the two Water Tribe siblings. It was like all sound ceased to exist. They could clearly see Aang yelling at the king, who looks like he was trying to calm him down. Zuko didn't appear to be moving at all, too shocked to do anything, not that he really could with his body still covered in the jennamite. Then they saw the king trying to bend Zuko towards him, which Aang blocked with his staff. The king then clenches his fist, which collapses the crystal surrounding Zuko, but the crystals on his back remain. The king then pulls his fist towards him, which causes the crystals to surge towards him, but with his legs given more mobility, Zuko drags his feet into the floor. The king stops bending, which causes the crystals to be overtaken by gravity once more, sending Zuko spiraling backwards. However, the remaining weight on his back sends him toppling over the edge of the balcony.

It feels like slow motion for everyone. Katara's eyes widen, her vision limited due to the closing jennamite. Sokka's mouth is open in a silent scream as he stares in shock. Aang's arm is outstretched, reaching for Zuko's falling form, but doesn't make it in time. Zuko's golden eyes staring at his friends as he falls over the edge. Katara and Sokka watch as his body slowly vanishes over the balcony before their vision goes white.

xXx

Aang can only watch helplessly as his friend falls over the edge of the balcony. He could probably save him with his airbending, but if he isn't careful with how he stops Zuko's descent, then he might seriously hurt him. Just as he readies himself to jump on his glider to try and catch him, the crystals around Sokka and Katara explode. He rushes to cover his face from the shards of jennamite as he feels two bursts of air next to him. A gust of wind rushes around the arena, blowing dust everywhere. He opens his eyes to see something he didn't expect.

Sokka and Katara's bodies are suspended by small hurricanes.

Sokka and Katara's eyes are glowing.

Just like when they all got their past Avatar visions.

 _Sokka_ and _Katara_ are in the _Avatar State_.

Katara is slowly moving her arms in a vertical circle, a familiar airbending move to Aang. He rushes to the edge of the balcony to see that Katara caught Zuko with a nice cushion of air, gently depositing him onto the ground. Sokka makes a vertical slicing motion which sends a precise blast of condensed air towards Zuko's chains. The chains connecting his wrists to each other and to his waist were sliced, along with the metal casings on his hands. The two of them then turn towards the balcony, more specifically, the old king. Aang turns to look back at the king, whose face speaks of untold levels of shock.

“ **You dare attempt to harm a member of our family!** ” Katara cries out, her voice layered with the voices of dozens of other Avatars.

“ **King of Omashu!** ” Sokka interjects, his voice layered the same way. “ **For attempting to remove our Fire Piece from us we will not show you mercy!** ”

The two of them raise their arms as if to deal a deadly blow, and the king takes a step back in shock. The two start to bring down their arms when a small pebble flies by Sokka's head. Another one sails over Katara's head, causing the two of them to pause. A few more fly by them, missing them due to the windy hurricanes holding them up. The two Water Tribe siblings look down to see Zuko, poised ready to throw more pebbles. Once he sees that he has their attention he drops the handful of pebbles.

“Katara! Sokka!” he calls up to them. “Please stop! I'm fine! He won't take me away!” his voice holds a begging tone.

Aang realizes what he's doing and joins in. “He's right! We won't let him take Zuko away! You don't have to hurt anybody!”

Sokka and Katara seem to hesitate, which Zuko jumps on.

“I think we've all had enough of people getting hurt due to misunderstandings! Please, you guys! Didn't you two say that there was something you wanted to do once we were out of the crystals?!” Zuko calls up to them, his voice leaking of desperation.

But it seems to get through to them and they slowly lower to the ground, their hurricanes dissipate into nothing. As the glow leaves their eyes, the two of them reach out to each other, managing to keep each other standing. Zuko runs over to them, worry clear on his face as he stops a foot or two away from them. The siblings slowly blink as they realize Zuko is there before they both reach out the hand that is not keep up the other and grasp Zuko's arms and yanking him into a tight hug. Zuko yelps as he is tugged into the surprise hug, but after a few moments, wraps his arms around the two of them as well. Not wanting to be left out, Aang jumps down and joins in the hug, Sokka and Katara wrapping their arms around him. The four teens all have tears leaking from their eyes, but they pay no attention to them as they take comfort in each other. Being there, together, _safe_.

The group is not sure how long they stood there hugging each other, but they're snapped back to reality when someone lightly coughs. They lighten their grips, but don't let go, as they turn to see the old king standing there, face lite with curiously and wariness.

“I would like an explanation.” he asks carefully. “I feel like I'm missing something rather big here.”

Aang lets out an awkward chuckle as he turns to face the king complete. “You have no idea, Bumi.”

The king stares for a second before he tosses his head back and laughs hysterically, snorting and chortling all the while.

“Wait a minute!” Sokka pops up. “ _He's_ your friend from a _hundred years ago_!!”

Aang scratches the back of his head awkwardly. “Yeah, I figured it out when I thought about the tests and how I solved them. I solved the question of figuring out your name the same way I solved the challenges. I had to open my brain to the possibilities.”

Aang runs over and wraps his arms around Bumi's waist, while the old king wraps his around Aang's smaller body. “Oh Aang, it's good to see you again.” his arms tighten. “You haven't changed a bit. Quite literally.”

“Wait, if you were Aang's friend, then why didn't you just _say_ something?” Katara asks. “Why put us all through that?” her grip tightens around Zuko. “Why were you trying to take Zuko away?”

“Well, in my defense, I wasn't aware he was your friend.” Bumi tells them. “Now, you four wouldn't mind telling me why two of you starting glowing, would you?”

Aang turns to look at his friends before looking up at his friend. “Um, this isn't something we want getting out to the rest of the world, Bumi.”

“Well, my guards aren't around.” Bumi tells them.

Aang walks back over to his friends and takes Sokka and Katara's unoccupied hands. The four teens all share a glance before nodding and look back towards Bumi. “Okay, I know this might sound really unbelievable, but the four of us are all the Avatar.”

Bumi stares.

“Technically we're four of five _pieces_ of the Avatar.” Sokka corrects. “We still have to find the person who is our Earth piece.”

Bumi _stares_.

“We each represent a part of the Avatar Soul: Water, Earth, Fire, Air, and Spirit.” Katara adds. “I'm Water, Sokka's Spirit, Zuko is Fire, and Aang is Air.”

_Bumi stares._

“We all have to master each part of the Avatar Soul and can only learn that part from the person who represents it.” Zuko explains. “So we're heading to the North Pole so Katara can be taught waterbending as the rest of us can only learn it if she does.”

_**Bumi stares.** _

Sokka leans over and whispers. “Is he okay?”

Aang gives a look of worry towards his old friend. “Bumi? Are you okay?”

Bumi starts laughing again. “Well, _this_ certainly is a surprise.” he puts his hands on his hips. “Care to give a little demonstration?”

The four share a look before closing their eyes. A few seconds later they all open their eyes, glowing clear and bright. After a few moments the glow fades and the teens look at Bumi in suspense.

“Well, this war will certainly be interesting.” Bumi tells them.

“Please, Bumi.” Aang folds his hands in front of him. “You can't tell _anybody_ about this. Nobody but us knows about this, and if we can keep the Fire Nation from knowing about this then we'll have an advantage.”  
“We've already been going around stating that Aang is the Avatar, which is true.” Katara adds. “As we learn the elements we'll all get stronger. When it comes time for us to take down the Fire Nation they'll have to deal with five Avatars.”

“It will be a bit difficult for me since I have no clue how to learn about the spiritual side of things.” Sokka puts in. “But we're making due.”

“And I'll use what I learned from my uncle to teach them once they reach the fire element.” Zuko finishes.

“Does your uncle know about this?” Bumi asks looking at Zuko.

Zuko shakes his head. “I'm not sure how he would have taken the news. So the four of us made it look like they captured me when we escaped. And if he's still after us, that's on top of Zhao as well, and I'd rather stay out of his hands.”

Bumi throws his head back and starts laughing. “You tricked the _Dragon of the West_?! Oh that is hilarious! How I would love to see that man's face when he eventually finds out.”

“Please!” Zuko begs him. “I'm begging you. Don't tell my uncle! The less people that know right now the better, and I _really_ don't want to see my uncle's face when he finds out that I'm a traitor.”

Bumi seems to examine Zuko for a minute before smiling. “Alright, I promise. I won't tell anybody about your little secret.”

“And do you promise not to send Zuko to any creepy old friends of yours!” Sokka cries, he and Katara holding Zuko close. “He's our family and he's not going anywhere!”

Bumi's eyes widen as he stares at them for a few seconds before bursting out laughing again. He then bends over, still laughing his head off. The four teens watch the old man as he continues to laugh, not knowing what was so funny. As Bumi's laughter fades off and he straightens up again, wiping away tears of laughter away, he looks down at the teens who are still staring in confusion.

“Ahh, I haven't had a laugh like that in ages!” he gives the teens a reassuring smile. “Don't worry, I'm not sending him away. It looks like he's needed elsewhere.”

Like a taunt string being cut, the Gaang's muscles loosen up and relax. Katara, Sokka, and Aang gather around Zuko and wrap their arms around him in a big hug. Zuko tries his best to wrap his arms around the three of them as tears fall once more from a pair of blue eyes, one set of gray, and one set of gold.

“Now, why don't I have the guards bring you back your stuff, get you out of those metal boots and give you all a proper feast.” Bumi tells them, looking at Zuko in particular. “And don't worry, I'll make sure that there's a fruit salad.”

The teens can't help but laugh.

xXx

With all their stuff back, and Zuko in his proper boots, the group was sitting at a much smaller table in a much smaller room. As promised, there was a fruit salad and much more vegetarian appropriate food. With all the drama done with, the group of teens could feel relaxed as they ate up. Sokka was delighted by the new meats, Katara was intrigued by one of the drinks, and Zuko in particular just being grateful that he didn't have to worry about being chained up. Aang and Bumi talked for the rest of their time in Omashu. Even taking a ride on the mail chutes for old times sake.

When it came time for them to leave, Bumi watches as they depart, the gate closing behind them. The last thing he sees before the gate shut is Aang jumping up and down as he wraps his arms around his friends.

“Well, this next year should be interesting.” he snorts. “Sorry, Iroh. You're going to have to ride through the dark a little while longer. I don't snitch.”

 

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> OKAY!!!! This chapter has brought MUCH FRUSTRATION!!! This chapter was a bitch to write out! MAJOR WRITER'S BLOCK! Mostly for the sake of shoving the fight between the Gaang into it. The story needed some more tension, so Lex and I wanted to have the Gaang get into a little argument. One of the reviewers, I can't even remember or find who it was, thought it was a little odd how easily Katara and Sokka just went along with this. There was mistrust, then after they had their vision it was friendliness all around. I can see where that unsettled some readers, so Lex and I created an argument between the group. Now, it's not all that great in terms of magnificent story telling, but at least we were able to get something down. You guys have NO IDEA how difficult it was for Lex and I to create this argument!! Like, we look back on our struggles now and want to cry! We knew how we wanted the middle and end of the fight to turn out, but we had no clue on how to get the ball rolling.  
> Yes, the reason this chapter took months to come out was because we were having a hard time writing out an ARGUMENT. Even now, I'm pretty sure both Lex and I still have some mild dislike on how we started the argument off. Not to mention the process of writing the fight out. We knew we wanted the 'discussion' to take place in four segments. One: the grounding for the fight, two: the slap, three: understanding, and four: the forgiving. Not to mention that each part that we created fit where we put it in. Like, we didn't want the understanding to be anytime before the challenges, but it needed to be dealt with before Aang found out Bumi's identity. Another thing about this chapter was the added content, like Sokka and Katara going into the Avatar State. We thought it added a lot more feeling to the siblings connection to Zuko. They care for him, and they're not going to let anyone take him away. So yeah, all this was necessary. It was either suffer through these months of thinking, writing, rewriting, and discussing; or remove the argument all together and just write out the chapter as the episode initially happened, with a few added details.  
> To be frank, I think it works a lot better this way than if I had just made this a carbon-copy, with Zuko additives, of the Omashu episode.  
> Oh, and just for those who were freaked out by Bumi thinking of giving Zuko to some creepy old pervert. Be still your fears. If you hadn't figured it out, Bumi was talking about Iroh. He never mentioned him by name because then the teens would wonder why Bumi was calling Iroh an old friend.  
> Hello! Lex here! I'm the beta reader of this series. You shluld probably expect a little more delay between chapters! I've started Spring term at college so Im likely going to be quite the busy bee for a while, though Rain knows my free days so jt shouldnt be too long between each chapter.
> 
> All comments will be read and enjoyed.
> 
> Helpful ones will be read and loved.  
> Deliberate flames with be read and passed over.  
> Thank you all!  
> Uploaded to Ao3: 1/18/2019  
> Uploaded to Fanfiction.net: 1/18/2019


	5. Haru

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Disclaimer: I do not own canon Avatar: The Last Airbender, but this AU of it is my creation, this AU belongs to no one by Lex_Perseph0ne and myself. If I see anyone trying to claim otherwise, I will find you and it won't be a happy encounter. For you.

Katara and Aang are on a raised, grass plateau with a gentle stream running out beneath it. Katara is meticulously folding one of their sleeping blankets. Aang is lying down nearby on the root of a tree, bored out of his mind. Momo screeches and lands on the plateau as Sokka and Zuko approach.

Aang raises his head to look at them. “Great! You're back!” he jumps off the root and lands next to his three friends as the other two males dig around in their bags. “What's for dinner?”

“We've got a couple of options.” Sokka says as he digs through his bag. “First, some round shaped nuts. And some kind of oval shaped nuts, and some roots and grass.” he smiles up at the others. “Dig in!”

Katara and Aang share a glance before looking back at Sokka. “Seriously? What else you got?” Katara asks, wearily.

“Hey, be glad we actually found things that are edible.” Zuko interjects. “I'm the one who found the roots and grasses. This numbskull-” he gestures roughly to Sokka. “-was mistaking rocks for 'rock shaped nuts'.” he opens up his bag to show a bit more nuts and roots than Sokka's bag.

Katara lets out a small grumble. “I was hoping for something more filling..”

“If it really gets that bad we can dip into our dried meats and fruits, and until we find a bigger stream or a river, we're not getting fresh meat. I don't think we'll find any small critters around these parts.” Zuko says with a small glance around at the trees surrounding them.

Aang opens his mouth to say something but is cut off as the earth shakes, causing Momo to shriek and hide in Aang's shawl.

“What the heck was that?!” Sokka cries out.

Another quake hits, throwing them off balance.

“It's coming from over there!” Aang cries out as he and Katara start running in the direction of the loud booming sounds.

“Hey!” Sokka yells towards them. “Doesn't logic dictate that you're supposed to run in the _opposite_ direction of loud crashing, booming sounds!? Not directly towards them?”

“Face it, Sokka.” Zuko begins as he starts to follow the two youngest of the group. “Curiosity overrules logic when you're young.”

Sokka stares after him for a few seconds before crying out. “If you're **five** , maybe!” he quickly follows the other three.

Sokka joins the three hiding behind a fallen tree as they watch something. Looking over, Sokka sees that it's a young man, maybe his or Zuko's age, bending boulders into the air and punching them into the ravine walls.

An earthbender then.

“It's an earthbender..” Katara whispers in awe. He _was_ the first bender she or Sokka has seen around their age range: barring Aang or Zuko of course.

“Let's go meet him!” Aang says excitedly.

“He looks dangerous.” Sokka says. “We should tread cautiously.

“Hello there!” Sokka chokes on his inhale. “I'm Katara! What's your name?!”

The young man looks at Katara and gasps in surprise, dropping the boulder he was currently bending. He flees from them quickly, bending a small avalanche of rocks to prevent pursuers.

Not to be deterred by the reaction, Aang calls out. “Nice to meet you!”

Katara, feeling very dejected, shrugs softly. “I just wanted to say hi.”

Aang suddenly brightens up. “Hey, if that guy ran that way that means there's some _where_ to run! Maybe a village!?”

“Maybe they'll have a market?” Zuko chimes in.

“Which means no nuts or roots for dinner!” Katara cries as she and Aang take off in the direction of their wayward earthbender.

“Hey!” Sokka and Zuko cry out, feeling a little insulted.

xXx

Sokka and Katara walk through the village's streets while Aang is trying to bargain for a hat.

“It's really nice!” he puts in on. “I'll trade you some nuts for it.”

As Katara looks around, she notices the earthbender boy from earlier as he enters a shop. Curiosity spiked, she follows him. She opens the door to the shop just as she hears an elder woman tell him to get to his chores.

“It is you.” she says, startling both the boy and the woman. “Why did you run from us earlier?”

“Um, you must have me confused for some other kid.” the boy says, his lie obvious on his face.

Just then, Aang, who seems to have gotten his hat, Zuko, and Sokka enter the shop behind Katara, having heard the conversation.

“No, she's got the right guy.” Aang interrupts. “We saw you earthbending earlier in that ravine.”

With a gasp and, with speed frightening for a woman her age, shuts both the door and window. “They saw you doing _what_?!” she asks the young man, fear in her voice.

“Mom, you can't seriously believe these foreigners? I mean, look at the way they dress!”

The four teens look down at their blue, gray, and yellow garbs, trying to see something wrong with their clothing. They weren't _that_ weird, were they?

“You _know_ how dangerous that is, Haru!” the boy's mother lectures. “You know what would happen if _they_ caught you earthbending!”

Suddenly there is a loud, harsh knocking at the door. Everyone looks at it in suspense.

“Open up!”

Sokka walks over to the window and takes a peek through the blinds of the window. He nearly chokes as he sees the red uniforms.

“It's the Fire Nation! Act natural!”

That sends everyone scrambling. As Haru's mother walks over to the door calmly, the four teens, plus her son, are flitting around the room trying to hide any distinct features. As Haru's mother opens the door, allowing the Fire Nation men through, he stares at the scene in front of him. The five teens stand around the room acting more like statues then real people. Sokka and Haru seem to be 'discussing' a pair of red and green apples. Katara is leaning forward, her mouth full from having stuffed berries inside it. Zuko is leaning against the counter, seemingly trying to be cool, while keeping his head turned to the left to keep his scar, which he quickly covered with his bangs, from prying eyes. Aang is standing next to a barrel with his hand on top of the lid, his face lit up with a big smile. His pose; however, is short lived as the lid flips, dunking him into the lukewarm water and causes him to fall down. The middle man, seemingly the one in charge, gives the teens a sour look.

“What do you want?” Haru's mother asks the man. “I've already paid you this week!”

The man, now identified as a tax collector gives her an arrogant side glance. “The tax just doubled. And we wouldn't want an accident, now would we?” he asks.

He creates a ball of fire between his hands, the action causing everyone in the room to take a step back. Zuko, being a native firebender, is the only one who doesn't automatically move back, but he does remember to force himself to in order to look afraid.

“Fire, can be very difficult to control. Even for a firebender.” the tax collector lets the fireball fade, his 'warning' still very much there.

Haru's mother looks resigned as she and the tax collector approach the store's counter, where she opens a small chest and passes a meager handful of Earth Kingdom currency to the tax collector. Haru leans against the counter, staring with utter contempt towards the Fire Nation man. As the man looks at the coins, he picks out a few as he turns away.

“You can keep the copper ones.” he says as he drops four copper pieces to the floor.

The door closes behind him and his men, and when one says 'closes', the word 'slam' would be better used.

“Nice guy.” Sokka says dryly. “How long has the Fire Nation been here?” he asks, looking at the elder woman.

“Five years. Fire Lord Ozai uses our town's coal mines to fuel his ships.” she tells them as she returns the copper coins to the small chest.

Zuko's chest tightens as he listens to what his father has done.

“They're nothing but thugs, and can hardly be called soldiers, no matter whose army they are apart of. They steal from us, leave us with little to nothing in order to supply themselves with whatever they want. And everyone in this town is too much of a coward to do anything about it.”

 _Yeah_ , Zuko wasn't mentioning his parentage anytime soon thank you.

“Quiet, Haru!” his mother lectures. “Don't talk like that!”

“But, Haru's an earthbender?” she questions. “He can help!”

The elder woman shakes her head. “Earthbending is forbidden. It's caused nothing but misery for this village!” she casts a glance towards her son. “He must never use his abilities, lest he be discovered by the Fire Nation.”

Katara felt insulted by this, Sokka could tell. Growing up and being unable to hone her gift due to the lack of available teachers was always a sore spot for his sister. Yet Haru here could have gone to find an earthbending teacher whenever he wanted and his mother was telling them he wasn't allowed to use his gift. Not even allowed to practice is secret either if her reaction from earlier was anything to go by. Yeah, Katara was not happy.

“How can you say that? Haru has a gift!” she exclaims. “Asking him not to earthbend is like asking me not to waterbend. It's a part of who we are!”

The woman shakes her head, as if she had expected this response. “You don't understand.”

“I understand that Haru can help you fight back.” Katara fires back. “What can the Fire Nation possibly do to you that they haven't done already?” she asks.

“They could take Haru away!” the woman responds instantly, looking at her son. “Like they took his father oh so long ago..”

The four teens look at Haru and his mother in utter shock.

xXx

Later, the Gaang is with Haru, standing inside a barn, Appa already inside.

“My mom said you can sleep here tonight. But you should leave in the morning.” he says the last bit in an apologetic tone.

Aang, not at all bothered by the tone, replies. “Thanks. I'll make sure Appa doesn't eat all of your hay.”

The five teens all turn to look at the sky bison with a mouthful of hay. The ten ton furry creature pauses in his chewing to look at the teens before continuing to chew. Haru then leaves the group, seeming to take a walk. Katara runs after him, Sokka following a second later.

“Hey.” Katara calls to him as she and Sokka catch up. “Look, I'm sorry about what I said earlier. I didn't know about your father.”

Haru shrugs it off. “It's okay. It's kind of funny, the way you were talking back in the store? It really reminded me of him.” a small smile creeps onto his face.

Katara, happy that she made him smile, felt flattered. “Thanks.”

“I'm not surprised by it anymore, honestly.” Sokka adds. “Katara has always talked back. Pretty sure the only one she didn't talk back to was our mom.” he let out a small laugh. “She would talk back to dad and Gran-Gran all the time!”

Katara seems to pout as Haru lets out a small laugh. He looks out at the setting sun. “My father was very courageous. When the Fire Nation invaded, he and the other earthbender were outnumbered ten to one. But they fought back anyways. He never surrendered, not even at the very end.”

“He sounds like a great man.” Katara tells him.

“You know, he kind of reminds me of our dad.” Sokka adds in. “You know, except for the 'being a bender' part.”

The three teens approach the top of a steep cliff, gazing out to the setting sun far beyond them.

“After the attack, they rounded up my father and every other earthbender who fought that day, and took them away.” Haru kneels to the ground. “We haven't seen them since.”

“So that's why you hide your earthbending.” Sokka explains.

Haru nods. “Yeah. Problem is..” he earthbends two stones in a circle above his hand. “the only way I can feel close to my father now..” he crushes the stones to sand in his hand. “is when I practice my bending. He taught me everything I know.” he finishes as the winds blows away the sand.

Sokka and Katara both sit next to Haru. “See this necklace?” she fingers her necklace. “Our mother gave it to me.”

“It's very beautiful.” Haru tells her.

“We lost our mother in a Fire Nation raid a long time ago.” Sokka explains.

“This necklace is all either of us has of her.” Katara says softly. Sokka rests a hand on her shoulder.

“It's not enough, is it?” Haru asks them.

Katara and Sokka hang their heads. “No.” Katara tells him.

“It will never be enough.” Sokka adds.

xXx

Later, as Katara, Sokka, and Haru are walking back to the barn, a loud boom sounds off and rock and dusts blasts from a distant mine entrance. The three hear the cries for help.

“Help, help!”

“The mine!” Haru cries out as he starts running.

Sokka and Katara are right on his tail as they head towards the mine. The entrance has caved in and under the tremendous pile of rocks it caused an old man is pinned to the ground laying on his stomach. Sand continues to pour down, rocks intermittently falling.

“Help me!” the old man cries out more desperately as he sees people coming to help.

Haru braces his back against the mine entrance. Katara grabs under the old man's arms and tries to pull him out. Sokka tries freeing the old man's back end by pushing and throwing rocks out of the way.

“Ugh! It's not working!” Sokka cries as he stops several rocks from falling on the old man's head.

“We have to get help!” Katara yells.

“There's no time!” Haru tells her. “Pull harder!”

Katara tries as demanded and continues to try and pull the old man out. Seeing that she was getting nowhere, she stops to take a breath. Suddenly she gets an idea and turns to look at Haru.

“Haru. There's a way _you_ can help him.” she tells him.

Haru, knowing what she was asking, turns his head away. “I _can't_.”

“Please, there's no one around to see you. It's the only way!” Katara begs him.

Haru seems conflicted as to what he should do. Fear was very clear on his face, both Sokka and Katara could see it, plain as day. Another tremor breaks over the area.

“If you're going to make a choice it would be a good idea to make it soon!” Sokka cries. “This rock pile is not going to be held back for much longer!”

Decision made, Haru leaps away from the falling debris, spinning back to face it as he assumes an earthbending form. Sokka and Katara take notice of small rocks halting in their decent as Haru takes a deep breath. Thrusting his arms out in front of him, he bends all the rocks down the tunnel, freeing the old man.

“Haru! You did it!” Katara cries, excitement clear in her voice.

“Celebrate later.” Sokka tells her. “Let's get you home.” Katara and Haru help the old man to his feet and aid him walking away from the mine.

“Let's just hope this doesn't come back to bite us in the butt later.” Sokka mutters under his breath.

xXx

With the Water Tribe siblings back in the barn, Katara is telling Aang and Zuko about what happened at the coal mine. Katara is sitting up in her bedroll with a lap in her lap. Sokka is lying on a square bale of hay with his blanket over him. Aang is sprawled out on Appa's head with Momo lying on his back. Zuko is sitting up on one of Appa's legs with a blanket covering his legs.

“It was so brave of Haru to use his earthbending to help that old man.” Katara says finally as she finishes her tale.

“You must have _really_ inspired him.” Aang tells her.

“I guess so.” Katara smiles.

“That, or pressured him.” Sokka interjects. “He was, after all, reluctant to do anything at first.”

“Must you always something negative?” Katara nags him.

“Hey, I'm glad Haru saved the old man too!” Sokka tells her. “I just hope that nothing bad happens.”

“Hey.” Zuko interrupts before a fight can break out. “Let's go to sleep. We have to leave at dawn.” he lays down and pulls his blanket up to his chin.

“Dawn!” Katara exclaims. “Can't we sleep in for once?” she whines a little.

“Absolutely not!” Sokka commands. “This village is crawling with Fire Nation troops. If they discover either Aang or Zuko here we'll be eating fireballs for breakfast.” he snuggles into his blanket. “Goodnight.”

Katara smirks and replies slyly. “I'd rather eat fireballs than rock-shaped nuts and roots.”

“Goodnight!” both Zuko and Sokka say with finality.

Katara and Aang share a few playful chuckles with each other before she blows out the lamplight to get some rest.

xXx

Sometime later in the night, Fire Nation troops march on a mission through the dead of night. The man in the lead raps on a wooden door. The door opens to reveal Haru, who is extremely confused. His face morphs from confused to worried and he gasps when he sees the Fire Nation troops at his door. His face takes on a look of betrayal when he sees the old man he saved earlier that day.

“That's him!” the old man tells the lead officer. “That's the earthbender!”

The Fire Nation leader shoves the old man out of the way and approaches Haru. Haru screams as the man forces Haru into his grip and hauls him away.

xXx

The sun was barely rising to greet the world when Katara carries a jar outside of the barn. She sets it down beside a water pump and proceeds to waterbend, drawing water out of the spigot and into the waiting pot. Picking it up, she spots Haru's mother standing with her back to her, gazing out towards the distant ocean. Heru's mother slowly turns around, laying her tearful gaze upon Katara. Katara realizes that she hadn't seen Haru doing the chores he promised he would do in the morning. Within that moment Katara realizes what happened and drops the pot.

She runs into the barn as the other three are folding blankets. “They took him! They took Haru away!”

“What!?” Aang exclaims, surprised.

“The old man turned him into the Fire Nation!” Katara says hurriedly. “It's all my fault – Sokka was right I forced him into earthbending!”

Sokka steps beside her, taking her hand in his and laying his other hand behind her shoulder. “Slow down, Katara. When did this happen?” he asks calmly.

“Haru's mother said they came for him at midnight.” she tells him.

“Then it's too late to track him, he's long gone.”

Katara clenches her fists as she turns towards the open door. “We don't need to track him. The Fire Nation is going to take me straight to him.”

“And... why would they do that?” Aang asks, confused.

“What are you thinking?” Zuko asks, not liking where Katara's mind is heading.

“Because they're going to arrest me for earthbending.” she says determined.

Aang, Sokka and Zuko all shared horrified looks.

xXx

Zuko, Sokka and Katara work together to push a boulder over top an air vent on a rocky road while Aang is off to the side watching a butterfly.

“Now, I thought you were crazy at first, Katara, but this might work.” Sokka tells her. “There are ventilation shafts throughout these mines. All Aang as to do is send an air current from that vent to this one right here. The boulder levitates and _ta-da!_ Fake earthbending.” he thinks for a moment before shrugging. “Well, you know, at least until we learn to _actually_ earthbend.”

Katara turns towards Aang. “Hey, Aang? Did you get all of that?”

Aang is not looking at her as he replies. “Yeah, sure. I got it.”

Zuko looks over at the airbender. “Do you remember your cue?”

“Yeah, yeah. Just relax. You're taking all the fun out of this.”

Sokka looks over at him, aggravated. “By _this_ , do you by chance mean intentionally being captured by a group of ruthless firebenders?”

Aang smiles, obviously humored by the situation. “Exactly! That's fun stuff!”

“You and I have _very_ different definitions of _fun_.” Zuko says stiffly.

Sokka looks over and sees a group of Fire Nation soldiers approaching. “Here they come! Get in your places!”

Zuko runs over to hide by Aang who stops playing with the butterfly and Momo tries catching it as it flies away. As the group of spear-wielding guards approach, Katara and Sokka make a show of walking into each other by their stomachs before emphatically shouting.

Sokka points at Katara in fake anger. “Get out of my way, pipsqueak!”

The soldiers are very confused and can only raise their eyebrows.

Katara hunches over to over-exaggerate her anger. “How _dare_ you call me pipsqueak, you giant-eared cretin!”

Sokka copies Katara and hunches over. “'What did you just call me?”

Zuko buries a groan in his palm. “These two make the Ember Island Players look amazing...”

Katara swings her head around that her hair loopies flail around wildly. “A giant-eared cretin! Look at them!” she gestures to his ears. “They're so huge that herds of animals could use them for shade and not be crowded a single bit!”

Sokka towers over her. “You better back off!” he then slips a hand by his mouth and mutters. “Seriously, back off.”

Seeming to be more determined, Katara now heightens above her now-cowering brother. “I will _not_ back off! I bet elephants get together and make fun of how large _your_ ears are!”

Unable to tell if she means it or not – you can never tell with sisters – Sokka gets angry. “That it! You're going down!”

Katara points her finger at Sokka. “I'll show you who's boss!” she over-dramatically leaps towards the boulder, clenching her fist upward to which there is no reaction and says angrily. “Earthbending style!”

Nothing happens. The soldiers look on confused while Sokka carefully looks over to where Zuko and Aang were hiding. Zuko quickly looks over at Aang, who is messing with the butterfly.

“I said, _earthbending style_!” Katara shouts.

Zuko jabs a finger into Aang's side which causing the airbender to realize his mistake. He leaps up and blasts a strong jet of air into the ventilation duct, suddenly sending the boulder levitating into the air. Once the boulder is in the air, Momo is revealed behind the boulder, who has his arms raised, licking himself.

One of the guards points his finger at the lemur. “That lemur is earthbending!”

Katara and Momo each remain in their positions. Katara eyes the man in surprise. Zuko facepalms.

“We have people like _this_ in the Fire Nation?” Zuko mutters into his palm.

Sokka angrily waves his arms towards Katara. “No, you idiot, it's the girl! Whose ever heard of a lemur that can bend?!”

“Oh..” the guard blushes, his shame apparent. “Of course.”

Sokka steps beside Katara and lays his hands on her shoulders as the boulder falls to the ground. Katara stands patiently.

“I'll hold her.” he leans in closer and whispers into Katara's ear. “You've got twelve hours to find Haru. We'll be right behind you on Appa.”

The guards escort Katara away, leaving Aang, Sokka, Zuko, and Momo to watch as she takes a final glance back. Zuko crosses his arms as the group disappears.

“That, was the worst acting I have EVER seen.” Zuko says stiffly.

“Hey!” Sokka cries, feeling insulted.

“'Pipsqueak'? 'Big ears'?” Zuko says mockingly. “Did you two practice that?”

Sokka can't even find any way to respond as he fingers his ears. His eyes find Momo perching on Aang's shoulder. “Momo, _you_ have some big ears!”

Momo folds his ears back, hunches down, and coos in protest.

“Leave Momo out of this!” Aang cries.

xXx

Katara is loaded into the back of a Fire Nation transport with other earthbender prisoners. She is wearing a brown, tattered prison garb over her blue Water Tribe outfit and is staring glumly downward. Down in the crowd, Sokka, Zuko and Aang each have conical yellow hats in a crowd, attempting to stealthily observe her travel, Zuko being the only one having any success in the stealthy part. Katara looks longingly over her shoulder as the cart bobs along a pier, heading towards a waiting barge on the ocean.

The three male teens rushed to get to Appa as the barge started leaving the pier. On their way out of town, Sokka stops running, looking off at something. Zuko notices and grabs the back of Aang's garb, stopping the monk in his tracks. The two boys run back to Sokka, who is still looking at something in the distance.

“What's wrong?” Zuko asks.

“It's him.” Sokka growls, angrily.

Zuko looks over to where Sokka was glaring, not seeing anything noticeable. “Who him?”

“That old man.” Sokka points towards an elderly man. “He's the one Haru helped at the coal mine. He's the one who sold out Haru!”

Before Zuko can stop him, Sokka is running over to the old man and grasping the front of his shirt.

“You utter piece of crap!” Sokka cries out. “He helped you! And you sold him out to the Fire Nation!”

Zuko and Aang run up and try to detach him from the elder man. “Sokka, stop!”

But Sokka wouldn't let go. “Why!?” he grits. “Why did you turn in the guy who saved your ass!” he questions. “He didn't _have_ to use his earthbending to save you! He _knew_ what he was risking by earthbending! But I guess he didn't expect the guy he saved to turn him in!”

The old man is looking at Sokka in a combination of shock and surprise. Sokka gives the old man a harsh shake, trying to pull an answer from him.

“WHY!?” Sokka cries.

Zuko and Aang manage to pull Sokka off the old man, but with the last harsh shake he gave the man, the old man fell to the ground. The old man looks up at Sokka's angry face, as if he can't understand why Sokka is angry.

“B-because it's the law...” the old man says. “Earthbenders are to be reported as soon as they are found. It's what we're supposed to do. Plus you get a reward for any earthbenders you turn in.”

The three boys look at the old man in shock. He turned Haru in... because it was the law? For money? Sokka and Aang couldn't believe what they were hearing. Zuko could, but it didn't make it any easier to listen to. He also knew that they needed to get going.

“Come on, Sokka! We need to leave!” Zuko whispers harshly.

At first, Sokka doesn't look like he's heard Zuko at all. He yanks his arms out of Zuko's and Aang's grip, but he doesn't jump for the elder man. Aang and Zuko stay on guard, just in case Sokka decides to have another go at the old man. Sokka's face has nothing but a nasty glare on his tan features.

“I wonder how many earthbenders you've turned into the Fire Nation troops... How many fathers you've handed over, how many sons you've turned in, how many daughters you've sold out... How many mothers you've made cry by handing their children over for a couple of _coins_.” Sokka's voice is _dripping_ with hatred.

The old man seems to be trembling, like he is expecting Sokka to attack him.

“I want you to feel the kind of pain that you cause the families of the earthbenders you turn in. I want you to understand what you put them through...” his eyes rake over the figure on the ground. “But there's two things keeping me from doing anything...”

The old man's eyes seem to ignite with a hope, but Zuko and Aang's eyes are full of a very different kind of hope.

“The first reason is because I know that doing so would make my father ashamed of me.” he says simply. “The second is because when I look at you... all I see is the most pathetic thing I have ever seen. And I realize.. you're not worth it.”

Without another word, Sokka turns his back on the old man and starts off at a fast pace in the direction where they left Appa. Zuko and Aang are left in such a stupor that it takes until Sokka reaches the treeline for them to get moving. Zuko turns to look down at the old man on the ground.

“You should be ashamed of yourself.” was all he says before he runs off.

xXx

She lost track of how long the trip to the prison took, but that seems insignificant once Katara and five other prisoners are lined up on the deck of the prison. On either side spear-wielding guards stand. From the big wall of metal an arrogant man approaches the line of prisoners.

“Earthbenders.” the man says smugly. “It is my biggest pleasure to welcome you aboard my modest shipyard. I am your warden I prefer to think of you not as prison, oh no no no. I think of you all my honored guests. And I hope you come to think of me as your humble and caring host.” he starts to pace nonchalantly in front of the prisoners. “You will succeed here, if you simply abide-”

A prisoner interrupts the warden with a small fit of coughing. With no warning whatsoever, the warden leaps into the air and aims a blast of fire at the prisoner's legs in anger. The prisoner cowers away for safety as the warden stands defiantly toward the man.

“Now tell me. What kind of guest dishonors his host by interrupting him?!” he swings his arm. “Take him below!”

Some guards escort the man away. Then the warden simply continues his smug gait and returns to his speech as if nothing had happen.

“Simply treat me with the courtesy I give you-” he stops in front of Katara, who is scowling at him. He leans forward to stare into her face. “-and we'll get along _wonderfully.”_

The prisoners are taken on a tour of the metal facility. Below them, fellow prisoners can bee seen laboring, firebender guards positioned nearby. Katara's heart ached at what she was witnessing.

“You will notice, earthbenders, that this rig is made entirely of metal.” the warden spouts off. “You are miles away from any rock, earth or dirt.”

Here Katara can't help but pause and look off into the distance where she knows there to be land for them to bend. If only she knew a little more waterbending tricks then she could help!

“So,” the warden continues, “if you have any illusions about employing that brutish savagery that passes for bending among you people...” the warden lowers his voice, “forget them. It is impossible. Good day to you all.”

Without another word, or even a glance back at them, the warden struts off to do who knows what else.

A guard escorts the prisoners into the prison courtyard. Katara enters last and the metal gate closes behind her. Among many earthbending prisoners, one takes notice of Katara immediately.

“Katara?” a surprised voice asks.

Katara turns and sees Haru. She runs up to him and gives him a hug. “Haru!”

Haru returns her hug, but pulls back to give her a confused look. “What are you doing here?”

Katara gives him an apologetic look. “It's my fault you were captured. I came to bust you out.”

Haru looks at her in shock. “So, you got yourself arrested?”

She gives him a smile. “It was the only way I could think of to find you the fastest.”

Haru returns the smile. “You've got guts, Katara. I'll give you that.” Placing a hand on her shoulder, he guides to another part of the courtyard. “Come on. There's someone I want you to meet.”

They approach an old, gray-bearded man eating dinner among other prisoners.

“Katara. This is my father, Tyro.” Haru introduces, causing the older man to look up. “Dad. This is Katara. The one I was telling you about.”

Katara gives the man a slight bow. “It's an honor to meet you.”

Tyro gives her a nod of his head before handing her a bowl. “Have some dinner, Katara.” She accepts the bowl, but grimaces upon seeing its appearance. “It's not as bad as it looks.” Katara tries a spoonful, but becomes further disgusted. Tyro laughs at her expression with a small chuckle. “It is still pretty bad though.”

Another prisoner walks up and lays a hand on Tyro's shoulder. “Tyro. The prisoners are complaining there aren't enough blankets to go around.”

Tyro nods solemnly. “I'll talk to the guards. In the meantime, make sure the elderly are taken care of. The rest of us will simply have to hope for warmer weather.”

Katara decides to jump in there. “If you don't find it rude of me asking, what's your escape plan?”

“Excuse me?” Tyro asks, his eyebrows rising to his forehead quickly.

“You know, the plan to get everyone off the rig and back to your homes? What is it? Mutiny, sabotage, pushing all the firebenders into the water?”

“The plan? The plan here, young lady, is to survive. Wait out this horrible war.” Tyro says. “Home that one day, some of us can get back home and forget this nightmare ever happened.”

Katara can only look at him in shock. “How can you say that? You sound like you've already given up the fight?”

“'The fight'?” Tyro shakes his head mournfully. “This fight was over the moment we were boarded onto the ships that brought us here.” he looks at her straight into her eyes. “I admire your courage, and I envy your youth. But people's lives are at stake here. You think people haven't tried rebelling in the past? Haven't stitched together mutinies? Hell, I'm willing to bet that some even _have_ tried pushing the soldiers off the sides. But the warden? He's a ruthless man, and for the people who have been here long enough to have met his predecessor, they say he was just as bad.”

Tyro gestures to the entire prison yard. “Look at them, Katara. Many of them were just like you when they got here. Planned ways to escape from this rig and get back home, but the warden and his men were always there to stamp out any plan they launched. As time passes by, the strain from being separated from the earth starts to become too much. Many have lost their minds from being kept from their element and when that happens the warden tosses them over the side. In the madness of their minds, they forget to paddle.” Katara's face is horrified. “Some of the elderly you see have been here since they were Haru's age. Many were shipped here after being defeated on the battlefield. A lot of people died in this rig. Rebellions and mutinies are fewer and far between. I'm sorry my dear, but we're powerless.”

Katara's horrified face becomes obstinate. “We'll just see about that.”

She stands up and carries a trash can lid and a ladle, climbing on top of a wooden table. From there, she bangs the ladle against the lid to draw attention. All the prisoners in the courtyard turn to look at her, and the firebenders on the wall look down at her.

“Earthbenders! You don't know me, but I know of you. Every child in my Water Tribe village was rocked to sleep with stories of the brave Earth Kingdom, and the courageous earthbenders who guard its borders.”

A watchman walks up to the warden, who had come up to watch the prisoners, but the warden stops him and listens to the girl in the courtyard.

“Some of you may think that the Fire Nation has made you powerless. Yes, they have taken away your ability to bend. But they can't take away your _courage_. And it is your courage they should truly fear! Because it runs far deeper than any mine you've been forced to dig, any ocean that keeps you far from home! It is the strength of your hearts that make you who you are. Hearts that will remain unbroken when all rock and stone has eroded away. The time to fight back is now! I can tell you that the Avatar has returned! So remember your courage earthbenders,” she raises her voice, “let us fight for our freedom!”

Katara's speech is met with utter silence. Katara's heart fills with sorrow as she realizes how truly broken these people have become if even the news the the Avatar returning does not cause a stir. Up on the wall, the warden walks away smugly as he sees Katara's defeated posture.

xXx

During the night as she is sleeping, a figure creeps across the courtyard. They tap on her shoulder, causing her to jump. She would have cried out if the figure hadn't quickly covered her mouth. Upon closer inspection, Katara sees that it's Aang who urges her to be quiet and to follow him. The two come to the perimeter where Sokka, Zuko, and Appa are waiting to make their escape.

“Your twelve hours are up, where's Haru? We've gotta get outta here!” Sokka whispers.

Katara thinks back to the dull faces that had looked up at her after her speech. “I can't.”

“We don't have much time.” Sokka says, hurriedly. “There are guards everywhere. Get on!”

Aang seems to notice that there is something wrong with their female companion. “Katara, what's wrong?”

“I'm not leaving.” Aang and Sokka share a questionable look, but Zuko just looks exasperated. “I'm not giving up on these people.”

“What do you mean you're not leaving?” Sokka asks.

“We can't abandon these people! There has to be a way to help them!” Katara argues.

“Maybe she's right. What do you say, Sokka?” Aang asks.

“I say you're both crazy!” the four teens dodge a searching spotlight. “Last chance! We need to leave, now!”

Katara remains stern. “No!”

Sokka shakes his head in dismay. “I really hate it when you get like this. Come on, we better hide.”

Katara, Zuko, and Sokka flee. Aang stays behind just long enough to whisper to Appa to hide before joining them.The four teens carefully run around the courtyard, dodging spotlights and watchmen on night patrol until they've managed to hide near the edge of the barge far from any guards behind numerous boxes. Momo peeps over a wooden crate where they're hiding, acting like a furry little patrol guard, protecting their little meeting. It is as rather cute, not that the four teens notice as they huddle together seated on the metal ground in the darkness.

“We don't have much time now.” Sokka says as he momentarily joins Momo in peeking over the crates to check for anyone nearby. “What are we going to do now?” he asks, looking over at his sister.

“Why are you looking at me?” she asks.

“Staying instead of grabbing Haru and leaving was _your plan_ , so you need to contribute more if you want this to work.” Sokka points out.

“I really wish I knew how to make a hurricane!” Aang blurts out.

Zuko, Sokka, and Katara provide Aang with a a combination of un-entertained and confused facial expressions. Aang gestures with his hands but none of the other three have any clue what they're suppose to mean.

“The warden would run away and we could steal his keys!” the bald headed boy explains.

“That's a stupid plan simply based on an assumption, Aang.” Zuko states.

“Yeah,” Sokka agrees. “wouldn't he just take his keys with him?”

“Hey, I'm just tossing ideas around.” Aang shrugs.

“Earlier I tried talking the earthbenders into fighting back, but it didn't work!” Katara looks down in shame. “It was like they truly believed that freedom was impossible. If there was just a way to help them help themselves.”

Sokka cups his chin in thought. “For that to happen they'd need some kind of earth, or some rock. Something they can bend.”

Katara lays her palm on the metal surface. “But this entire place is made of metal!”

“No, it's not.” Aang says, pointing to the smokestacks. “Look at the smoke! I bet they're burning coal, in other words, _earth_.”

Zuko smacks himself in the head. “Of course! This is a _coal rig_!” at the confused looks from the other three he explains. “Coal rigs were built everywhere over the seas as a way to supply ships with fuel for their ships so they wouldn't have to dock at shore to get more coal. My ship came to many of these as a way to avoid docking and having to deal with whatever town we had come upon.”

“But this place is a prison for earthbenders!” Katara exclaims.

“I'm willing to bet that this place was converted into a prison as a secondary use for it. Normally it's the soldiers stationed here that have to shovel the coal, and then the soldiers stationed at ships would be the ones to load the coal onto their ships. But here they have the prisoners doing all of that instead. In fact, this probably isn't the only coal rig that was turned into a prison for earthbenders.”

“That's just, cruel.” Sokka says softly.

“Yeah...” Zuko mutters.

xXx

As morning arrives, everyone starts to wake up. Somewhere on the rig Sokka, Katara, and Zuko kneel next to an air duct. Katara looks worriedly towards the horizon as the sun gets closer to rising over it.

“It's almost dawn. We're running out of time! You sure this is gonna work?” she questions her brother.

He nods. “It should. These vents reminded me of our little trick back at the village. We're gonna do the same thing but on a much bigger scale. According to Zuko's description of these coal rigs, the piping system to the silo is rather simple. There should be a huge deposit of coal at the base there. Not to mention the whole system is ventilated. We had Aang close off all the vents except for one. When he does his airbending the coal will only have one place to go, right back here to us.”

Suddenly a cry of “There's the intruders!” has the three teens taking defensive forms. They are surrounded by a number of spear-wielding Fire Nation guards. The prisoners have gather a safe distance away from the spectacle, simply observing.

“Stay back!” Sokka cries, pulling out his boomerang. “I'm warning you!” he makes sure that his back is even with Zuko's and his sister's.

“Katara!” Tyro calls out to her. “Stop! You cannot win this fight!”

“You should listen to him child.” the warden warns her. “You're one mistake away from dying where you stand.”

Suddenly a rush of air fills their ears as the facility shakes. The ventilation shaft bursts off its hinges as an immense blast of coal soars into the air, crashing down into the courtyard into a gathered pile. Everyone present is silent, staring in utter surprise at the odd turn of events. Lastly, Aang leaps out from the barren ventilation shaft, landing atop the coal pile and coughing, covered in soot and dirt. Momo lands on his shoulder, shaking the same muck out of his fur. Katara runs up to the top of the pile and is followed by Zuko and her brother. She grabs a piece of coal as she faces the earthbenders.

“Here's your chance, earthbenders!” she waves the coal around. “Take it! Your fate is now in your hands! The battle between you and your oppressors has been evened out!”

Haru takes a step forward, intent on taking advantage of the readied weapon, but his father throws his hand up, bracing his son's chest to halt his advance. It seems that Haru was the only one who thought of fighting back, because no other earthbender takes a step forward or even raises a hand to bend their beloved element.

The warden bursts into amused laughter. “Foolish girl!” he cries out. “You thought a few inspirational words and some coal would change these people? Look at these blank, hopeless faces. Their spirits were broken a long time ago.” he continues as Katara does look at the prisoners, realizing he was right. “Oh, but you still believe in them. How sweet. They're a waste of your energy, little girl. You _failed_.”

The warden, confident in himself, turns to take his leave when abruptly a single piece of coal sails through the hair and pelts the back of his head. Outraged, he warden spins around to see who was the guilty culprit.

Zuko stands next to Katara, his arm outstretched from having thrown the piece of coal.

He turns towards the prisoners. “Are you going to let this pompous asshole keep you from your homes? From your families! You have the opportunity to fight back! To take back what the Fire Nation took from you! You have the chance to take down your oppressors and fight them with equal footing! All this time you've been here they've been able to take you down because you didn't have any earth to defend yourself with from their flames! Now you have it, are you really just going to stand there and let your chance for freedom slip past you!?”

This stirs up a murmur in the crowd, but still no earthbender makes a move to bend the coal. The warden smirks.

“Well, as you can see, they are too broken and stupid to take the _generous offer_ you have so graciously given to them. Pathetic little boy.”

The warden turns once more to leave when, again, he is whacked in the head by a piece of coal. He spins angrily to see who threw it _this time_ , he's rather shocked.

There, standing with a combination of anger and unwavering confidence, is Haru, defiantly levitating three pieces of coal above his hand. The warden sends a blast of fire toward Haru, who holds his arms up uselessly when the attack is blocked. Off to the side is Tyro, bending a wall of coal to defend his son. It was clear to see that, while he was visibly strained bending as he hadn't been able to do in _years_ , he had not lost any of his prowess as a bender.

Not willing to lose what power he had accumulated since taking this position, the warden gestures to the guards. “Show no mercy!” the guards send a blast of fire as one toward the rebelling prisoners.

Encouraged by two fellow prisoners taking to the coal, several earthbenders work together with tyro to haul a sizable mass of coal to block the fire. Tyro lets out a cry. “For the Earth Kingdom, attack!”

Slamming their hands to the ground, the mass of coal flies over their bodies and hits the ground in front of them, assaulting the guards. The battle immediately flares up, prisoners ducking blasts of fire and countering with fists of coal. Katara and Aang chase after Sokka as he snaps soldiers spears in two with his boomerang, tossing the broken spear heads to Momo as he flew overhead. Momo continues to collect other broken spear heads as they are thrown up to him by other prisoners who realize what he was doing.

Zuko runs around the courtyard, blocking fire attacks with his own bending, saving many earthbenders from severe burns. The prisoners quickly learn that he is not the enemy, despite the fire he bends, and many of them protect him in return. Zuko fights off three guards at once and because of this he doesn't notice another guard sending a blast of fire toward his unprotected back. A wall of coal is brought up to block the attack and Zuko takes out two of the guards, the third suddenly defending against a nearby earthbender. Zuko looks to see that Tyro was the one to throw up the wall to his defense, with no time to verbally thank him, he gives the older man a nod. Tyro gives him a nod in return. Suddenly, Zuko runs forward and throws a fireball towards Tyro.

“Duck!” he cries.

Oddly trusting the firebending boy, Tyro does just that. After the attack passes over him, he turns to see that a guard was thrown off balance with the sudden attack from the scarred boy. He quickly pelts the guard with a barrage of coal, knocking the man out.

Zuko holds out his hand to Tyro, and the man takes his hand as the teen helps him up. They are both quickly thrown back into the heat of battle. Zuko helps other earthbenders push the Fire Nation soldiers towards the edge of the rig. Tyro runs over to Haru and, in unison, the two compress gather coal into one lump before slinging it through the doors to make an exit for their escape. The shock from the attacks causing the guards on top of the wall to fall down. Tyro turns towards some nearby earthbenders.

“Get the elderly and sick to the ships! We'll hold them off!” he cries.

“Don't let them escape!” the warden cries as some of the prisoners help the older benders through the hole.

Aang quickly generates an air funnel and holds it between his hands. “Guys!” he calls to the Water Tribe siblings. “Throw me some coal!”

The siblings quickly begin to drop heaps of coal into his funnel, causing them to be fired off rapidly at the warden and his fellow benders, knocking them to the ground. Taking advantage of their lapse of attention, Tyro and two other earthbenders work together to lift coal beneath the feet of their adversaries, moving them away from the rig and over the ocean.

Suddenly nervous, the warden cries out. “No, please! I can't swim!” he shakes his head.

“Don't worry.” Tyro says clearly. “I hear cowards float.” releasing their hold on the coal, the three benders drop their enemies into the ocean.

xXx

As the earthbenders load onto a barge headed toward their home, Haru and Tyro approach the four teens who were standing on its deck.

“I want to thank you for saving me. For saving all of us.” Haru tells them.

“All it took was a little coal.” Katara denies.

Haru shakes his head. “It wasn't the coal. It was you and your friends.”

“Thank you for helping me find my courage, Katara of the Water Tribe.” Tyro says. “My family and everyone here owes you much.” he then turns towards Zuko. “And thank you for helping us realize what we were letting pass us by by simply ignoring the chance you four gave us. It gives me hope to see a firebender fighting for the freedom of the rest of the world.”

“It was nothing.” Zuko waves his hands. “I'm sure there are other firebenders who fight against the Fire Nation.”

Tyro then turns to Aang and Sokka. “I heard that it was you two who created and executed the plan that brought the coal to us. Thank you as well.”

The two boys blushes while scratching the back of their heads.

Haru turns to face Zuko. “I was a little surprised to find out in the battle that you were a firebender, but I can't find anything wrong with it since you saved many of the earthbenders here today as well as my father. Thank you so much.” Haru gave Zuko a bow.

Zuko waves his hands in denial. “I was only returning the favor of him saving me! There's no need to bow! Seriously, stand up!”

Sokka, Katara, Aang, and Tyro laugh at Zuko's flustered state. As their laughter dies down Aang walks over to help some people settle down and to comfort Appa who was happy to be back with his boy. Katara looks over at Tyro.

“I guess you all are heading home now.”

Tyro nods. “Yes, to take back my village.” he raises his voice and turns towards all the people behind him on the barge. “To take back all of our villages! The Fire Nation will regret the day they set foot on our land!” the crowd cheers in agreement.

Haru turns back towards the four of them. “Come with us.” he asks.

They shake their heads. “We can't.” Katara tells him. “Your mission is to take back your home. Ours is to get to the North Pole.” she and the boys look over towards the horizon.

“That's him, isn't it? The Avatar.” Haru asks, having mistaking the direction of their gaze towards Aang instead of the horizon.

Sokka nods. “Yeah, that's why we need to get to the North Pole. So the Avatar can learn the art of waterbending.”

 **Well, it's not really a lie.** Zuko and Katara think.

Haru turns towards Katara. “Katara, thank you for bringing my father back to me. I never though I'd see him again. I only wish there was some way...” he trails off.

Katara and Sokka nod, knowing what he was implying. “I know.” Katara says. She reaches up to touch her necklace as she always does when thinking of her mother, but her fingers only touch bare skin. “It's gone! My mother's necklace! It's gone!”

xXx

Later back on the rig as the sun is setting, Iroh stands alone facing the sunset amid coal lying about sparsely on the deck. He bends over to grab something from the ground and stands up with Katara's necklace in his hands. Knowing exactly who it belonged to, he grips it in his fingers tightly, knowing that he was on the right trail.

“Zuko. My beloved nephew. I will find you.”

He tucks the necklace into his robes for safe keeping and heads back towards his ship to begin the search for his nephew once more.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> So. Nearly over a month since our last update. BUT I HAVE GOOD NEWS! Lex and I have decided on a posting deadline for ourselves.  
> We're going for an every two weeks sort of arrangement. Now, don't expect an update every two weeks on the dot. Lex has college, and I have work so we have to work around each other's schedules to fit in time to work on this story. I may only have work, but Lex has classes to deal with, not to mention assignments. So if the two of us are a day or two late posting, you know the reason why.
> 
> Now, for something else that has bugged me a little bit. COMMENTS!! Many people have given this story Kudoes, and for those that have I thank you, but rarely do we get comments from people. I know I sound pushing and annoying, but comments really do light up mine and Lex's world. We love reading comments from people on both ao3 and on Fanfiction.net!
> 
> From lillmuffin12, MarvelMatt, Itsyoboy_mamesuke, Kiomori, PoCATo, Ria, and FireChildSlytherin5 on ao3,
> 
> to Elements1999, 22wolfgirl, Kira Ferris, Path of Heaven, marylopez0812, yoursafetyisassured, geogirl2014, and Heisenbee on Fanfiction. Even some asshole was fun to read, despite the irritation from having to explain the concept of an AU.
> 
> You all have made reading the comments section a joy and I wish more of you would leave us notes to read! Knowing that people enjoy what we are working to create helps us to keep working to bring it to you to enjoy!  
> Thank you all!~
> 
> Lex: Oh most definitely. We have decided on a schedule and I expect to at least somewhat keep to it. And comments are absolutely lovely to read. I enjoy them very much, even if I don't always respond, or Rain doesn't always do so, we absolutely find it worth keeping this fic going when we see comments about it, whether it be questions, theories, hypotheses, all of them are very welcome.
> 
> Now as I'm sure we'll be questioned in future chapters, some episodes will be removed if they are deemed too filler to work with the plot. I myself will be going over the episode scripts for Rain and may even write a few new 'episode outlines' to use in replacement of these episodes, so things will not always follow the original show, even in the way episodes were organized and spaced within. So do give us some good time to be sure what we do give you is some quality writing! That being said, we love ebery kudos received, and every comment. They give us the motivation to keep posting ~
> 
> So thank you lovelies for all your kudos and comments, I hope they continue!
> 
> All comments will be read and enjoyed.
> 
> Helpful ones will be read and adored.
> 
> Deliberate flames with be read and passed over.
> 
> Thank you all!
> 
> Uploaded (Ao3): 2/24/2019  
> Uploaded (Fanfiction.net): 2/24/2019


	6. Winter Solstice 1

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Disclaimer: I do not own canon Avatar: The Last Airbender, but this AU of it is my creation, this AU belongs to no one by Lex_Perseph0ne and myself. If I see anyone trying to claim otherwise, I will bring my grandmother's dictionary upon your head.

It's a cloudy day as the Gaang lounge in Appa's saddle. The sky bison is currently flying through the clouds so they still have some shade from the sun. Aang sits lazily atop of Appa's head as he usually does, chewing on a twig to attempt to relieve his boredom. Leaning against one side of the saddle, Zuko is currently shirtless as he works to repair a severe tear in his upper garment.

Initially Sokka made fun of Zuko for doing 'women's work' but Zuko merely looked at him and said, dead-toned “Kyoshi Warriors” and Sokka shut up pretty fast. When questioned by Katara why he didn't just ask her to do it like Aang and Sokka have in the past, Zuko informed her that he learned to do a lot of things so he wouldn't have to rely on other people to do small tasks such as this. When she complimented him on how even his stitches were, he admitted they were only that way through much trial and error.

Leaning against their supplies strapped down to the saddle is Sokka who is passing the time via carving. However; it does not look as if Sokka has much idea to what he's trying to carve from the block of wood, as he just carves with no direction. Katara is lying down on her stomach, her chin propped up on her elbows, staring dreamily over the edge of Appa's saddle. Momo is curled up near Sokka's head, sleeping on the luggage.

“Have you ever just looked at the clouds and noticed that they look so soft?” Katara wonders aloud. “Like you could just jump down and you'd land in a big, soft, cottony heap?”

Sokka turns his head towards his sister, a mocking smile on his face. “Maybe you should give it a whirl?”

Instead of looking at him in annoyance as she normally would have, Katara merely gives him a teasing smile. “Maybe I will. Once I get down to learning airbending, that is.”

Zuko snorts and persistently does not meet the sibling's gazes.

Aang perks up, excited at the change. “I'll do it!”

With a grab towards his staff, Aang jumps off of Appa with a huge smile on his face. As he begins his descent, he turns once around his axis. He continues to fall spreadeagled, laughing joyously. Katara, Sokka and Zuko pop their heads over the rim, looking down in the direction Aang fell. The joyful airbender is still smiling broadly as he vanishes into a cloud. Back up on the saddle, Katara has a worried look on her face, Sokka's face wide-eyed as he looks to where Aang vanished, while Zuko is unsurprised by Aang's actions. Sokka leans over the edge of the saddle to search the sky for their wayward airbender when Aang comes back up from behind them on his glider. The three teens turn around as they hear the snapping sound of his glider closing, and they watch how the airbender plops down on the saddle, his smile still on his face. The unimpressed faces of Sokka and Zuko meet him while Katara looks at him in surprise to see his clothes dripping wet.

“Turns out, clouds are made of water.” he tells them with a chuckle. He takes a deep breath and slams his hands together, balled fist in outstretched palm, creating an expanding air ball around him in the process, drying himself quickly.

As Aang leans back to rest on both his hands, he contently looks at Momo, whose fur is now all fluffed up by Aang's airbending. Sokka still has an unimpressed look on his face, while Zuko returns to mending his shirt. Katara glances from Aang to over her brother's shoulder as something in the scenery below them catches her eye.

“Hey, what is that?” she asks.

Sokka looks over his shoulder in the direction of Katara's gaze while Zuko looks up and trains his eyes over on what the two are staring at. Aang hops back onto Appa's head to get a better view while Katara gets up and walks to the front of the saddle. Four sets of human eyes widen as they get a clear view of what they were looking at.

The landscape in front of them, lush with greenery, is marred by a large dark patch of burned land standing out among the emerald green of the forest. By now all four teens are at the front of the saddle, varying levels of shock and surprise on their faces.

“It's like a scar...” Sokka mutters softly.

With no words spoken between the group, Aang lands Appa in an open area that was probably once a field of wheat or tall grass for the forest animals. Surrounding them stands the burnt remains of many trees, bushes, and scorched boulders. The ground itself is no longer a rich, healthy brown, but a deaden gray color from the ashes of the forest. Katara and Sokka examine the burnt trees while Aang and Zuko walk off a little ways.

“Listen.” Sokka murmurs softly. “It's so quiet. No sounds of life anywhere, human or animal.”

Katara, noticing the postures of the firebender and airbender, asks. “Aang? Zuko? Are you two alright?”

Sokka looks down to the ground and notices footprints with the distinct shape of Fire Nation soldier boots. “Fire nation! Those evil mongrels make me sick! They have no respect for-”

“Shh!” Katara turns towards him.

“What?” Sokka whispers, angrily. “I'm not allowed to be angry?”

His sister just points towards the other two males with a concerned look on her face as Aang slumps over, his face downcast at the sight of the blackened forest. Zuko collapses to his knees, his face full of complete distraught. Kneeling down with a sigh, Aang picks up some ash and watches as it slowly seeps through his hand and drops to the ground, sadness oozing from his body.

“Why would anyone do this?” Aang asks the air softly. “How could I let this happen?”

“Aang, you didn't let this happen.” Katara tells him. “It has nothing to do with you. _Either of you_.” she says, directing her voice to Zuko as well.

“ _Yes_ , it does.” Aang tells her. “It's the Avatar's job to protect nature. But I don't know how to _do_ my job. And now the three of you have to deal with the mistakes of my actions.”

“It was _my nation_ who did this, Katara.” Zuko speaks up, his voice harsh, like he's forcing the words out. “It's just as much my fault as Aang seems to think it is his.”

“That's why we're going to the North Pole, to find a teacher so I – and in turn all five of us – can learn to waterbend.” Katara tells them.

“Yeah,” Aang murmurs. “a _water_ bending teacher. But there's no one who can teach me – or any of us – how to be the Avatar. Monk Gyatso said that Avatar Roku would help me.”

“Roku? As in the Avatar before you and Zuko's great-grandfather?” Sokka asks. “There's a couple of things wrong with that. One: he died over a hundred years ago; how are you supposed to talk to him? Two: he's _Zuko's_ relative; why would you have a better connection to him?”

Aang shakes his head. “I don't know. I guess the way to talk to him would have been taught to me, and remember Sokka. This happened _before_ I was encased in the iceberg, so Zuko wasn't even a _factor_ then.”

Momo comes up to Aang and settles in his lap. Aang rubs his fur in thought as the group descends into silence.

xXx

“General Iroh! You'd better still be here! Where are you? General Iroh!”

Lieutenant Jee was reaching his wits' end with dealing with the distraught General. Ever since the Prince had been taken prisoner by _their_ prisoners, the General had been determined to get his nephew back. His mood was very different from before the Prince's capture, exhibit A being his reaction to finding out the crew had sold out what happened to Commander Zhao. At finding out how little they resisted and how quickly they squealed, everyone had their writing privileges revoked so they were unable to write home except for one letter explaining why they would not be writing for awhile. General Iroh was not about to make their families mourn by having them think their loved ones were dead.

Lieutenant Jee was the only one who had not been given a punishment because, unlike the others, he respected the young man who had been their captain for the last three years. Sure, he was a little unpleasant at times, but seeing as how many of those times were caused by the crew themselves, the crew had no reason to complain about his attitude when it was their fault. From the very beginning of their journey following the Prince's banishment, the young man was respectful of everyone on the crew, even if he did show it in all the wrong ways. There was also the issue of the way the teen seem to treat his uncle, even when the man was just showing he cared. Many of the crew had taken it as an insult as some of them had served under the man in the past. Only Jee had actually taken the familial connection into consideration and realize that the teen was like that with the old man _because_ he was family. He could let loose in regards to formalities because they were _family_. Jee was pretty sure that if Zuko had ever referred to him as 'General Iroh' the old man would have had an exaggerated sobbing fit, claiming the young man did not see them as family anymore and would only give in until the teen referred him as 'uncle' once more. It was no secret to anybody that the young man was like a second son to the general, even before the death of his blood son.

And it was because of that bond that Iroh was driving himself into the ground to get his nephew back. While he did not stop with his routine of playing Pai Sho with various crew members or drinking tea, the old man rarely slept as he often searched the skies in hopes of spotting the flying bison of his nephew's kidnappers. The old general was stressing himself to exhaustion. So Jee took it upon himself to bring the stressed bugger to a hot springs for a soak. He told the man bluntly to his face that unless he had a soak to help him relax and get his head back on straight, _no one_ on the crew would be taking the ship anywhere. While Iroh had been tempted to just go off on his own, he knew he would have better chances at finding leads on his nephew quicker with the ship at his command.

Now Jee can only hope the old man actually _got into_ the hot springs!

“General Iroh!” Jee calls again.

“I'm over here, Lieutenant.” a weary, but thankfully relaxed voice calls out.

Jee walks over to where a small group of natural hot springs were and there he was. Sitting in one of the hot springs was General Iroh, who looked _much_ better then when Jee had left him.

“How are you doing, General Iroh?” Jee asks.

“I would rather be looking for my nephew, but I can tell I needed this.” the old man reluctantly informs his lieutenant.

“Good.” Jee says bluntly. “I came to check on you to make sure you actually got into the hot springs. I also came by to tell you that the crew is getting the ship ready for departure so we'll be able to leave in at least half an hour.”

Iroh gives a small nod. “Well, I should probably get back to the ship.” he proceeds to stand.

Jee quickly throws up a hand to shield his eyes. “General Iroh, why don't you take another few minutes? You can head back to the ship within the next half hour. Frankly, the hot springs have made you more relaxed then you have been since Prince Zuko was taken. The crew needs you to be as clear of mind as possible. _Prince Zuko_ needs you to be of a clear mind if you intend to get him back.”

Using the banished prince's title, Jee hopes that it will further drive his point home for the general. If he wants to find his nephew, he needs to be healthy, well rested, and of a clear mind.

Iroh gives a sigh as he slumps back into the water. “Very well.”

With hopes that the stubborn old man will actually _stay put_ , Jee heads back to the ship.

xXx

Back in the forest, Katara approaches Aang and Zuko, who are still slumped on the ground.

“Hey, Aang! Zuko! You ready to be cheered up?” she asks, sounding really happy.

“No.” Aang says sadly.

“No.” Zuko says, his voice much firmer than Aang's.

Suddenly, the two of them are whacked in the head with a small blunt object.

“Ow!” Aang cries.

“Last time I checked you don't throw things at people to make them happy!” Zuko adds.

“How is that cheering us up?” Aang asks loudly.

Sokka chuckles over from where he's sitting. “Cheered me up.” a similar blunt object gets thrown at his head. “Ow. Yeah, I probably deserved that.”

Katara walks over and kneels between the two depressed boys. “These acorns are everywhere.” she says, holding two out in her hand. “That means the forest will grow back! Every one of these will be a tall oak tree someday, and all the birds and animals that lived here before will return.” she places an acorn in each of their palms and closes them.

Zuko and Aang look at their closed fist that held the promise of rebirth and smiled. “Thanks, Katara.” they say.

Katara gives them a smile before she gasps. The three boys look over to where she was staring and see an old man approaching.

Sokka immediately stands up. “Hey, who are you?”

“When I saw the flying bison, I thought it was impossible!” he says as he approaches. “But, those markings … are you the Avatar, child?” he says while looking at Aang.

 **This is getting old fast. Like, REAL fast.** The four teens think irritated. Aang gives the old man a nod of affirmation.

“My village desperately needs your help!” the old man tells them quickly.

xXx

The old man had taken the group to a nearby village that the old man had introduced as Senlin Village. As they walk through the village, they notice that all the adults were gathering up all the younger ones and quickly ushering them inside. They finally reach the building in the center of the village.

“This young person is the Avatar!” he tells the people inside the building.

One man, who looks to be the one in charge, walks over to speak to them. “So, the rumors are true! It is the greatest honor of a lifetime to be in your presence.”

“Nice to meet you too! So .. is there something that I can help you with?” Aang asks warily.

The village leader takes on a look of apprehension as he looks at the airbender. “I'm not sure...”

The old wanderer who brought them to the village steps in. “Our village is in crisis, he's our only hope!” he turns to Aang. “For the last few days at sunset, a spirit monster comes and attacks our village. They are Hei Bai, the black and white spirit.”

“Why is it attacking you?” Sokka asks.

The leader steps back in. “We do not know, but each of the last three nights, they have abducted one of our own. We are especially fearful because the winter solstice draws near.”

“What happens on the solstice?” Katara asks.

“As the solstice approaches, the natural world and the Spirit World grow closer and closer until the line between them is blurred completely.” The wanderer tells her.

“Hei Bai is already causing devastation and destruction.” the leader tells the group. “Once the solstice is here, there's no telling what will happen then.”

“So, what do you want Aang to do about it?” Zuko asks.

“Who better to resolve a crisis between our world and the Spirit World than the Avatar himself?” the wanderer looks at Aang. “You are the great bridge between man and spirits.”

Aang swallows his nervousness. “Right … that's me. The great bridge..”

“Hey great bridge guy, could I talk to you over here for a second?” Katara jumps in and leads Aang and the other two over to a window. “Aang, you seem a little unsure about all of this.”

“Uh, yeah. That might have something to do with the fact that I don't know anything at all about the Spirit World. It's not like there's someone to teach me this stuff!” he lowers his voice into a whisper. “Besides, Spirit World stuff is Sokka's side of the table not mine.”

“So... can you help these people?” Katara asks.

Aang shrugs. “I have to try, don't I? Maybe I'll find out something Sokka can try learning later.”

Katara looks at him with a smile. “I think you can do it, Aang.”

Zuko looks unsure about this. “I have to say, I don't think this is going to work.”

Sokka looks at Aang with a smile. “Yeah. We're all gonna get eaten by a spirit monster.”

xXx

Back at the hot springs, Iroh has fallen asleep from the relaxing waters. He is quickly woken up by a stirring in the trees.

“Who's there?”

Then a small creature scurries up the side of the hot springs.

“A meadow vole! I should have known.” he carefully picks up the creature. “You startled me little one.” he lets out a sigh. “It seems I dozed off and missed my Lieutenant's deadline, but I have to say, it was a very sweet nap.”

He lets the small creature down and it begins to hop up and down. This is followed by shaking and the ground moving toward Iroh. Suddenly, the rock at the bottom of the spring jumps up, capturing him. Three Earth Kingdom soldiers surround him. One of the soldiers picks up his clothing.

“He's a Fire Nation soldier.”

One of the men who wore a captain's uniform walks past him. “He's no ordinary soldier. This is Fire Lord's brother, the Dragon of the West. The once-great General Iroh, but now, he's our prisoner.

Iroh can only give the captain a stern look.

xXx

In Senlin Villiage, Aang steps outside the center building and awaits for Hei Bai.

“Hello, Spirit?” Aang calls as he walks towards the village entrance. “Can you hear me? This is the Avatar speaking. I'm here to try to fix things.”

Back in the building where Zuko, Sokka, and Katara wait with the leader and wanderer, they watch the monk.

“This isn't right.” Sokka suddenly says. “We can't just sit here and cower while Aang waits for some spirit monster thing to show up.”

The wanderer shakes his head. “If anyone can save us, he can.”

Zuko narrows his eyes as he looks on towards Aang. “He still shouldn't have to do this by himself.”

In the distance, the sun sets and night begins to fall.

“The sun has set. Where are you, Hei Bai?” Aang calls out. He then gets an idea. “Well, spirit... uhh... I hereby ask you to please leave this village in peace.”

He spins his staff and sticks it down in apparent authority.

Nothing happens.

“Okay.. well.. I guess that's settled then.”

He walks away, thinking that was it. Behind him; however, something begins to fade into the real world. They walk right behind Aang, who realizes that something is behind him and turns around to see them.

“You must be the Hei Bai spirit.” Aang begins. “My name is–”

The black and white spirit releases a burst of energy at him and quickly runs past the bald monk.

“My name is Aang!” the boy continues, running after the spirit. “I'm the Avatar and I would like to help. Hey, wait up!”

Hei Bai wreaks havoc, smashing buildings and destroying a tower with a energy blast.

The leader looks on in confusion. “The Avatar's methods are... unusual.”

“It doesn't seem to interested in what he has to say.” Sokka observes.

“Maybe we should go help him.” Zuko wonders.

“No.” the wander firmly states. “Only the Avatar stands a chance against the Hei Bai.”

“Aang will figure out the right thing to do, you guys.” Katara tells them.

Outside, Hei Bai smashes another building.

“Please, would you stop destroying things and listen?” Aang calls out to the being. “I'm trying to do my job as spirit bridge! Excuse me, would you _please_ turn around?” when the spirit still does not face him, Aang gets a little angry. “I command you to turn around now!”

The spirit pauses then turns around, hitting Aang, sending him flying into the roof of another building.

“That's it, he needs help!” Sokka cries as he exits the building.

“Hey, wait up, knucklehead!” Zuko runs out after him.

“Sokka, Zuko, wait!” Katara begins to follow them.

The village leader grabs her arm and holds her back. “It's not safe!”

Sokka pulls out his boomerang. “Hei Bai, over here!” he throws his weapon, but it merely bounces off the spirit's bottom. Zuko stops next to the Water Tribe boy and reaches for his weapon, no not his Dao sword.

Zuko had left his Dao back in Appa's saddle before they came to the village as he had wanted to try out a different weapon. Zuko had dug through his packs until he had found where he had wrapped up the bow and quiver. Aang, Katara, and Sokka had questioned the different weapon a few days prior when he had finished putting it together, but he had told them he liked expanding his horizons on the usage of weapons. Strapped to Zuko's back was a wooden short bow that he quickly removes and also removes some string from his robe from where he stashed it earlier. He notches one end of the string around one end of the wooden bow and quickly kneels as he bends the bow just enough to pull the other end of the string over the notch on the other end of the bow. He quickly pulls out an arrow from the quiver on his hip and notches it in the string and pulls it back until the feathered tip reached his cheek before taking aim.

He releases the arrow and watches as it shoots through the air before jabbing into one of the spirit's legs. It was an interesting, yet odd, sight. The arrow clearly did not break skin as no blood was shed– **Do spirits even HAVE blood to bleed out?** Zuko wonders. –but the arrow was very clearly stuck in the spirit's leg. Hei Bai lets out a cry as they yank the arrow out of their leg. Zuko quickly runs to join Sokka, who now stands next to Aang.

“Guys! Go back!” Aang yells to them.

“We'll fight him together, Aang!” Sokka tells him.

Aang looks dismayed. “I don't want to fight him unless I–”

“Get down!” Zuko cries as he tackles both Aang and Sokka to the ground, just barely avoiding the spirit's smaller black hands.

The firebending teen quickly yanks the younger males up by their arms and starts running.

“Come on! Don't let them grab you!” Zuko yells.

The two boys quickly get their bearings and start running, so Zuko can drop his grip from their arms. He pulls out another arrow and quickly notches it. Taking a risk, Zuko stops, turns and kneels all in one quick move. He takes aim quickly and releases his arrow into the spirit's face.

The spirit halts in their pursuit to let out a cry as the arrow crashes into their face. It does not embed itself like Zuko's last arrow, but it causes the spirit to pause just long enough for Zuko to start running again.

“Zuko!” Sokka calls back to him. “Get away from them!”

“ _Look out!_ ” Aang cries.

Before Zuko has time to look back and check, Zuko feels a great pressure against his back and he is knocked off his feet and lands a few feet from where he stood before. He notices faintly that the string holding his quiver to his hip had snapped with the sudden motion.

“Zuko!” Sokka cries as he starts running for his fallen friend.

“Sokka, wait!” Aang calls, reaching out a hand toward his friend.

Before Zuko can get to his feet, a loud _THUMP_ thunders right next to him. Zuko rolls over on his back and looks above him to see an angry black and white spirit. The firebender has no time to react as the spirit snaps him up in their smaller black hand.

“Zuko!” Sokka cries.

Hei Bai moves quickly and snaps him up as well. Satisfied with their chosen prey, the spirit quickly flees the village. Aang snaps open his glider and makes haste chasing the spirit.

“Sokka! Zuko!” Katara screams as she runs towards the village entrance. She is left standing at the gates, fearful of her friends fates.

xXx

At the hot springs, Lieutenant Jee and two soldiers look around for their general.

“Iroh! General Iroh! Where are you, sir!” Jee calls out.

“Sir, maybe he thought we left without him.” one soldier states.

Jee looks around the hot springs. “Something's not right here.” he looks closer at the spring where he had last seen his general. “That pile of rocks.”

“It looks like a landslide, sir.” the other soldier points out.

“I have never heard of land that slides uphill, soldier. Have you? These rocks did not move on their own.” Jee straightens his back. “General Iroh has been taken captive by earthbenders!”

xXx

In the forest, Aang continues to pursue the Hei Bai spirit, looking for his friends.

“Aang! Over here! Help!”

“Hang on guys!” Aang calls out to his friends.

Aang pulls out his hand, trying to free Sokka. His hand tightly wraps around Sokka's wrist and he tries tugging his friend free of the spirit's grasp.

“Aang! Hurry!” Zuko calls from Hei Bai's other hand.

Knowing he was running out of time, Aang hops onto the arm holding Sokka and snaps his glider shut. He swings back the glider like a bat and, with a burst of airbending, brings it down on Hei Bai's black arm.

Two things happen at once.

First, Hei Bai releases Sokka, causing the boy to fall and knock into the spirit's legs as gravity takes over.

Second, once Sokka was free of the spirit's grip, the black arm whips out and takes Aang within their grasp.

As Sokka knocks into the legs of the angry spirit, he feels the large being fade away, taking both Aang and Zuko with them.

As Sokka rolls across the ground, he slowly comes to a stop in front of a bear-like statue, completely unconscious.

And a few hours later, Sokka awakens.

“Aang! Zuko!” he cries, sitting up. He looks around, not seeing his friends anywhere. “No...”

xXx

Miles away, a team of earthbenders are riding ostrich horses, along with their captive. The lead rider carries a torch for light.

“Where are you taking me?” Iroh asks, curious.

“We're taking you to justice.” the captain tells him.

“Right, but where, specifically?” Iroh questions.

The captain sends him a smirk. “A place you're quite familiar with, actually. You once laid siege to it for 600 days, but it would not yield to you and your army.”

Iroh nods, realizing where they're heading. “Ah, the great city of Ba Sing Se.”

“It was greater than you were, apparently.” the captain tells him.

“I acknowledge my defeat at Ba Sing Se.” Iroh tells him, a plan forming in his eyes. “After 600 days away from home, my men were tired, and I was tired.” he lets out a yawn. “And I'm still tired.” he then falls off the horse.

The men quickly pick him back up, but not before he manages to slip off one of his sandals. He smiles cleverly as he is placed back on the ostrich horse.

xXx

At the entrance of Senlin Village, Katara awaits at the village entrance for the return of her boys. The old wanderer approaches her.

“I'm sure they'll be back.” he tells her, hoping to cheer her up.

“I know.” she says solemnly.

The old man places a blanket around her. “You should get some rest.”

Katara clutches at the cloth around her. “Everything is going to be just fine...”

“Your brother and friend are in good hands. I would be shocked if the Avatar were to return without either of them.” he tells her.

As the old man speaks, Sokka approaches them.

“Hey, Katara.” Sokka greets her sadly. “I know you're probably wondering where the others are... but I don't know...”

The sun begins to rise over the horizon.

“The sun is rising.” the old man mutters. “Perhaps they will return soon.”

Sokka snaps his head up and looks at the old man in disbelief. “Wha-dude are you blind! I'm right here! Sure, Aang and Zuko aren't but come on!” he walks over and waves his hand in front of the elder man's face. He suddenly stops as he realizes that his entire appearance has taken on a blue hue. “Whoa! What's with the blue! Am I in the Spirit World?!”

xXx

Lieutenant Jee dismounts from his rhino as he picks up a sandal. He gives it a sniff before reeling back, his face full of disgust.

“Yeah, that's General Iroh.” he quickly remounts his rhino and quickly follows his trail.

xXx

Sokka is sitting next to his sister, a little space between them as he was not fond of his limbs passing through his sister, thank you very much.

“I'll figure this out, Katara. I promise.” he tells her, even though she cannot hear him. “I mean, come on. There's no way Aang would have been able to deal with this. I'm the Spirit Piece after all! I was _born_ to deal with this Spirit World mumbo jumbo! I mean, yeah we're all the Avatar so we're all technically the bridge between the worlds, but this is MY area of expertise! All I have to do is... figure out what I have to do from here.” he snorts. “But once I do that, no problem.”

Appa approaches and Sokka stands up and stretches out his arms in happiness.

“Appa! Hello, you wonderfully furry creature!” the bison breathes on Katara in comfort. Sokka slumps over. “I guess you can't see me either.”

“It's okay, Appa, don't worry.” Katara pets Appa's nose. “I'm sure they're on their on their way back right now. I bet they even found you a bunch of moon peaches for a treat.” she then stands up and the two walk back into the village.

Sokka angrily kicks at the ground. “Argh! What am I supposed to do! Yeah, I'm the Spirit Piece, but that doesn't mean jack squat when I don't know how I'm supposed to BE that piece! Aang didn't have any Spirit World training, why would anybody think _I_ would!” he faces the sky. “Avatar Kuruk! I could really use some help here!”

Then, Sokka hears something. “Hello?” he turns around and notices a flying creature heading straight for him. “Okay, that doesn't look the least bit friendly.” he looks around and notices a decent sized puddle. “Oh am I glad that it rained the other day!”

He waves his arms around and sends a whip of water towards the oncoming creature.

Or, he _tried_ to.

Sokka spins back towards the puddle that doesn't even ripple.“Oh come on! Yeah, I'm new at bending, but I'm not _that_ bad!”

He repeats the motions he had practiced several times with his sister, but the water doesn't move at all. He stares at his hands as he slowly realizes what the problem was.

“Seriously! I can't bend while in the Spirit World!”

He turns around just in time to see the creature land before him. It was not overly large, like Appa, but it was certainly bigger than an ostrich horse. He would peg it being slightly smaller than the rhinos Zhao's men rode. As he looks at the creature, he realizes that it's an arctic water creature. In fact, this creature went extinct several hundred decades ago. Way before Kyoshi, or maybe even Yangchen!

The lower half of the creatures body was similar to that of a tiger seal, while the upper part was more similar to a bird. The lower body was colored gray covering up to its wings, which faded to a pure white before yielding to its black head, or at least that's what his Gran-Gran told him. It was pretty hard to tell now considering the creature also had a blue hue. The entire body was covered in feathers, which was odd for a creature with a seal half. Standing before him was an _arctic tern seal_. It was an interesting creature in its time due to the fact that it could both fly in the sky, yet also swim underwater with no hindrance whatsoever.

The arctic creature moves its head just enough for Sokka to see that the extinct creature wasn't alone. There was a _person_ on it's back. The person was clearly male, and he was dressed in Water Tribe garb. The odd thing was, the clothing was _old_ , like the style hadn't been used in decades! Older styles had more layers, unnecessary accessories that served no purpose, which was why they had been removed in the last century of Water Tribe clothing. The mans hood was also pulled back which showed off a hairstyle similar to Avatar Kuruk's, only with more beads and braids.

“Okay, weird question but you wouldn't happen to know where Aang and Zuko are, would you?” Sokka asks, his voice shaky.

The man's mount, as Sokka realized the only reason for the man to be on the creature, leans forward and reaches out with their beak and touches his forehead. He sees a vision of the man flying through the skies on his mount. Suddenly, Sokka knew exactly who he was looking at.

“You're Avatar Tikaani and his animal guide, Sesi...” he says in wonder.

The man nods, a small smile on his face.

Sokka shakes his head and gets to the matter at hand. “I need to save my friends, but I don't know how! I'm supposed to be the spiritual aspect of the Avatar Soul, but I don't know what I'm doing. I don't even know how I got in the Spirit World to begin with. Aang said that his mentor told him that Avatar Roku would tell him what he needed. I need answers, can you help me get them?”

The mount turns so her, yes she's a she, side was facing Sokka. Tikaani extends his hand out to Sokka, who takes it and hops up behind him. He turns to look back into the village where his sister is petting Appa.

“I'll be back, Katara. With Aang and Zuko right behind me.” he looks down at Sesi as she straightens up. “Let's go see Roku!” Sesi launches into the air, Sokka screaming his lungs out at the very fast ascension.

xXx

Up on a mountain, the team of earthbenders are carefully traversing the path. Iroh, bored beyond belief sitting on this ostrich horse, looks at the skies and notices an extinct creature from the arctic waters. On the creature's back were two figures, one an older man that Iroh did not recognize, but the young boy Iroh remembers _very well_. He gasps in wonder as he watches the boy, Sokka, ride across the sky. The earthbenders don't seem to notice at all.

“What's the problem?” the captain asks him.

“Nothing.” then Iroh got an idea, a mildly cruel one, but one nonetheless. “Actually, there is a bit of a problem. My old joints are sore and aching, and these shackles are too loose.” he says.

“Too loose?” he asks, his brows furrowing.

“That's right.” Iroh tells him. “The cuffs move and jangle around and bump my wrists.” he wiggles his chains for emphasis. “It would help me if you tighten them so they wouldn't shake around so much.”

The man stares at Iroh for a few seconds before he says. “Very well. Corporal, tighten the prisoner's handcuffs.”

They all halt their horses. The corporal dismounts and moves to Iroh. As he touches his handcuffs, Iroh breaths deeply and heats them up. He pushes the corporal's hand to the cuffs, causing him to scream in agony. Iroh jumps free and blasts fire at the soldiers. He then rolls himself down the hill as the soldiers try to get control of their mounts. As he rolls down the hill, one of the soldiers quickly hits him with a rock slide. All of the soldiers chase after him, reaching him at the bottom of the hill.

“He's too dangerous, Captain!” one soldier says. “We can't just carry him to the Capital! We have to do something now!”

The captain nods. “I agree. He must be dealt with immediately and severely.”

xXx

With Sokka, Sesi, and Tikaani, they approach an unknown island with a temple. They fly straight through the doors and then up towards the roof.

“Hey! What are you doing, are dead people mad or something!!” Sokka screams.

But his worries were unnecessary as they fly right through the roof and into a mysterious room. Within the room is a celestial calendar and a statue of Avatar Roku. Sokka dismounts from Sesi and approaches the statue, but turns back towards the dead Avatar and his guide.

“Um, when I asked to see Roku, I was kind of hoping for something that could talk back.”

Sesi presses her beak against Sokka's forehead. A vision of a comet appears to him. “Wait, a comet? That's what he guy wants to talk about?” he thinks for a moment before looking back up at them. “When can my friends and I talk to them?”

Tikaani points upwards towards a light beam which points just to the right of the statue's face. When Sesi presses her beak to his forehead once more, Sokka bowing his head in acceptance, he sees a vision of the sun setting and rising repeatedly, and the light moving closer to Roku's face.

Sokka's eyes snap open. “It's a calendar, and the light will reach Roku on the solstice! So, that's when I'll be able to talk with Roku?”

Tikaani gives a silent nod.

“Well, I can't wait that long! I need to save Aang and Zuko now!” Sokka says, his voice echoing his desperation.

Tikaani gently pulls Sokka back upon his mount's back and they take Sokka away from the temple.

xXx

In the sky near Senlin Village, Katara is flying on Appa over the forest, searching for her missing friends.

“It's no use, Appa. I don't see them anywhere.” she tells the bison sadly. “Our best hope is to go back to the village and wait for them to come back.” with that said, she re-directs Appa to the village.

xXx

Following a set of ostrich horse tracks, Lieutenant Jee notices Appa in the sky.

“The Avatar!” he turns his body slight, on impulse, but pauses and looks back at the footprints he had been following. “Dammit.”

xXx

Tikaani and Sesi take Sokka back to the bear statue where he had woken up, moving at fast speeds. Sokka notices his body is there and also prepares for impact. Suddenly, the dead Avatar and his animal guide vanish into the statue and Sokka is returned to the real world intact.

He looks around wildly before settling down. He turns and looks at the statue, its large bear form standing tall over him. With determination in mind, Sokka takes off at a run towards the village, only pausing to pick up one small thing from the ground.

As the sun sets, the villagers busy themselves with the routine of shutting their young indoors. Katara stands outside the center building, looking at the gate. She quickly notices a figure running out from the forest and nearly sobs in relief when she recognizes her brother. She quickly runs to him and tackles him in a hug.

“You're back!” she then notices that he's alone. “Where's Aang and Zuko?” she asks.

Sokka shakes his head. “I don't know...”

The evening gives way to night.

xXx

The soldiers surround Iroh, who is knelt in front of a flat rock with his arms outstretched in front of him.

“These dangerous hands must be crushed.” the captain says.

He pulls up a boulder and lifts it over Iroh's arms, then drops it. However, Lieutenant Jee arrives in the nick of time and kicks the rock away before he breaks the chains with his boot.

“Nice timing, Lieutenant.” Iroh compliments.

“Any slower and you would have needed a doctor, General. 'Nice timing' was necessary.” Jee retorts, his voice annoyed.

“Surrender yourselves!” the earthbending captain yells. “It's five against two. You're clearly outnumbered.”

“That is very true,” Iroh agrees. “but you are clearly outmatched.”

The soldiers fire rocks, but Iroh destroys them with the chains by swinging them around. Jee takes out two solders with a couple of fire blasts. A rock is fired at him, but the general catches it and throws it back at the soldier, knocking them down. The captain fires three rocks at Jee, which he dodges effortlessly. The captain brings up a large mass of rock, however, Iroh throws his chains around his ankles and pulling backwards, causing him to fall flat on his face and causing the rocks to fall on him. Groans are heard all over the area as the soldiers nurse their bruises.

“Now would you _please_ put on some clothes, general?” Jee says, eyeing Iroh's loincloth.

xXx

As the sky grows darker, everyone hides inside of the buildings. The leader having grown fearful once he discovered that Sokka had come back, but Aang and Zuko had not. Katara and Sokka were safely within the center building as they had before. Neither sibling knew what was going to happen, since Aang was not here to deal with Hei Bai. They watch the entrance, looking out for the black and white spirit. However, the spirit appears already inside the village and immediately starts smashing at the buildings, adding to the damage they had done the previous night. The moment he saw the spirit, Sokka knew that he couldn't just stand by and wait for someone else to deal with the problem.

So he ran out to face it.

“Sokka! What in the moon's name are you doing!” Katara screams at him, fearful of the spirit taking him away like they had the night before.

“I have an idea!” he calls back, not pausing in his running at all.

He quickly climbs the outside of the building Hei Bai was currently destroying. Once he had reaches the top he grabs a loose piece of rubble that had come from the next door house and launches it at the spirit.

“Hey! Over here!” he yells at the spirit.

It seems that the spirit was getting more irritated with him, since they turned almost immediately. They reach out an arm, as if to grab him, and he doesn't move.

Once the arm was only a few feet from him, he quickly maneuvers over the hand and lands on the spirit's arm. Not willing to waste a single moment, Sokka runs down the length of Hei Bai's arm and uses his momentum and gravity to launch himself at their face. Landing flat on the spirit's face, Sokka quickly places the palm of his hand against the spirit's forehead. Within that moment, Sokka sees the spirit's true form.

As if suddenly calmed, Hei Bai lowers themselves to the ground and gently deposit Sokka onto the ground. Once on solid ground, Sokka looks up into Hei Bai's face.

“I knew it! You're the spirit of this forest!” he says in amazement. “I had a hunch. You're upset and furious because your home was burned down.” he takes a deep breath before continuing. “When my friends and I saw the forest was burned, I was full of disbelief that anyone would do something like this. My friends, the ones you took yesterday, they both thought that it was their fault actually. But you know something?”

Sokka reaches into his tunic to grab the object he had picked up on his return to the village. “My sister gave us hope, a guarantee, that the forest would come back, stronger than ever.” he holds up the acorn for the spirit to see and leaves it at their feet.

The spirit picks it up, staring at the acorn. Then they turn to exit the village, reverting to their natural panda form. They walk away peacefully, and behind them, a series of bamboo branches grow, and several people, including Zuko and Aang exit from them.

“Aang! Zuko!” Sokka and Katara cry as they launch themselves at their friends, other villagers embracing their loved ones.

“What happened?” Aang asks. “I remember getting caught by Hei Bai, then nothing. I was walking through this odd looking forest, then suddenly I'm here.”

“You two were trapped within the Spirit World for 24 hours!” Katara tells them. “How are you guys feeling?” she asks.

“Seriously light-headed.” Zuko says, pressing a hand to his temple.

“I don't understand.”

The four teens turn towards the village leader, who is looking at them in confusion.

“The Avatar is the bridge between the two worlds. How were you able to deal with the Hei Bai?” he asks, looking at Sokka.

Aang and Zuko look rather confused, while Katara and Sokka look a little panicked. Then Sokka, being the plan guy, comes up with a bull-faced lie.

“I'm spiritually inclined.” he tells the leader.

“What?” the man looks confused with the answer given to him.

“Everyone in this group has a part to play. My sister is his waterbending teacher. Zuko is going to be Aang's firebending teacher once he masters water and earth. We still need to find him an earthbending teacher. And me? I'm the one whose supposed to help him figure out how the whole Spirit World bridge thing. I have a more spiritual connection than most people, which is why I am teaching him how to master the art of dealing with the Spirit World. It's why I was so worried about him facing Hei Bai alone yesterday! I knew that he wasn't ready, but I let him do it anyways because I saw how _hopeful_ you were.” Sokka lies blatantly to the man's face.

He does not look over at his sister, or his friends, who are surely looking at him in utter surprise. Doing so might give up the whole game.

“You're his spirit teacher? But you are so young!” the old wanderer exclaims, looking Sokka up and down.

“Yet I know more of how to deal with the Spirit World than most people. Even people in their eighties rarely get much spiritual interaction in their lives.” Sokka retorts.

The leader seems to cross examine Sokka for a moment before he seems to find something he likes, and he nods his acceptance.

“Very well. Thank you, Sokka.” the leader bows. “I wish there was a way we could repay you for what you've done.”

“Well, we're good on food.” Katara mumbles.

“And we still have _plenty_ of money.” Aang adds in.

“Tradeables.” Zuko responds.

They all look at him.

“We don't need money or food, but we could use things for trading.” he says, looking at his friends. “Sometimes people don't work with money, they barter instead.”

“Do we really need it though?” Aang questions.

“If it allows us to keep money for food, I think it's a good idea.” Sokka says.

“It would be an honor to help you prepare for your journey.” the leader tells them.

The leader walks off to gather his people to get the necessary supplies. Meanwhile, Zuko and Aang turn towards Sokka and Katara, questions evident on their faces.

“What exactly happened after I got you out of Hei Bai's grip?” Aang asks, dumbfounded.

“I'll tell you later, but right now we have a more important issue to deal with.” Sokka tells them.

“What's that?” Zuko asks.

“I found out a way that we can talk to Avatar Roku's spirit.” he tells them.

“Really?” Katara exclaims.

“There's a temple on a crescent-shaped island and if we go there on the solstice, we'll be able to speak with him, maybe even the other Avatars as well.”

“But the solstice is tomorrow!” Zuko exclaims.

“Yeah, but we have a bigger problem.”

“What's that?” Aang asks.

“The island is in the Fire Nation.” Sokka says.

Aang, Katara, and Zuko's faces go pale.

 

 

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Well, this chapter was a bitch! Very few scenes I had to change, yet oddly enough still a pain to write down! This was agony, enough so to make me miss my own self-proclaimed deadline! If this chapter had a physical form I would slap it silly!
> 
> This chapter was very important, as we had planned from the very beginning to have this chapter be about Sokka, so we needed it to be just right! This was about Sokka getting more in touch with his Spirit Piece, and being more at peace with the part he plays. I'm not sure I managed to portray that quite right with how I wrote it, but I hope I managed to give a vague feeling at least.
> 
> Did you lot like the new Avatar and animal guide? Well, it's going to be a continuous thing! Lex and I figured that since we're stretching it far by having the group be related to the last four Avatars, why not go ahead and introduce more of them? We have 176 available Avatars to pick and choose from (I looked it up and simply deducted Roku, Kyoshi, Kuruk, Yangchen, and Wan from the given number of 181 Avatars). There are endless possibilities!  
> If you have an idea for an Avatar that you want shown in a future chapter, simply put down what nation they hail from, an animal guide, and names and genders for both. Make sure you include a description for both the Avatar's clothes as well as the animal guide's appearance.
> 
>  Lex: Yes! Thankfully it won't be as ridiculous to need significance for as other plans we have for the story, so please feel free to submit Avatars and spirit animals! It'll be appreciated, as I'm the one who searched up the names for this Avatar in the chapter, I spent a ton of tkme finding it before Rain told me I didn't need to go so into detail and meanings behind the spirit animal, lol.
> 
> All comments will be read and enjoyed.
> 
> Helpful ones will be read and adored.
> 
> Deliberate flames with be read and passed over.
> 
> Thank you all!
> 
> Uploaded (Ao3): 3/6/2019  
> Uploaded (Fanfiction.net): 3/6/2019


	7. Winter Solstice 2

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Disclaimer: I do not own canon Avatar: The Last Airbender, but this AU of it is my creation, this AU belongs to no one by Lex_Perseph0ne and myself. If I see anyone trying to claim otherwise, I will douse you in meat and let my mom's dog have at you. He's food possessive.

* * *

The full moon shined brightly in the early morning of the sky. Within the small area of Senlin Village, very few people are sleeping as most would during this time of night. While the young were asleep, the adults were quietly bustling around gathering up the necessary items for the saviors of their village. When the Fire Nation burned up a vast section of the forest, it upset the spirit who guarded it, Hei Bai. The spirit couldn't tell the difference between the people who burned their forest and the people who already lived near the forest before the burning.

The villagers had seen Appa in the sky as the Gaang passed through the sky and had landed to check out the damages from the fire. Knowing that the only person in the world who would have one anymore would be the last airbender, the Avatar, one of the villagers had come out to see them and beg for their help. Since the Avatar was the bridge between the real world and the Spirit World, they had hoped Aang could do something to save their village before Hei Bai could do more damage during the solstice. Of course, Aang didn't have any experience in anything spiritual, so when he was doing a terrible job of dealing with Hei Bai, his friends Zuko and Sokka had jumped in to help him.

Of course, this only got them both kidnapped, and in the process of freeing Sokka, Aang got captured himself caught. This left Sokka in the Spirit World, unable to bend or communicate with anyone else in the real world. He met a previous waterbending Avatar and his animal guide who took him to a place where he and his friends would be able to speak to Roku, and hopefully their own Avatar ancestors as well. The experience left Sokka with the odd knowhow of how to deal with the rampaging spirit, and was able to get his friends and the missing villagers back. They were also able to keep their precious Avatar secret by saying Sokka was spiritually inclined and was Aang's spirit teacher. Now the only thing they had to do was head to the island where the place Sokka was taken is located.

Only problem?

It's in Fire Nation territory.

xXx

The four teens were currently making sure they all had everything before they left. Since they were good on food and money, thanks to Zuko, there wasn't much the villagers could give the teenagers in thanks for saving their village. However, Zuko suggested giving them tradeables, so they could barter instead of having to use their money instead. The villagers were happy with that idea, so they gave the teens many fine fabrics. They reasoned that the fabrics would be the best option as they weight considerably less than most other bartering items and, if packed correctly, didn't take up much room. From cotton, wool, and silk to finely embroidered and richly dyed cloths.

Sokka and Katara were amazed by the feeling of silk, as it was not suitable to wear in the south since it held in no warmth. The softness of the wool was amazing as well. They had heard from their father before that the wool he had felt was rough and scratchy, nothing like what they had packed away in the saddle. The cotton drew their attention as well as it was unbearably soft.

Now, with their new goodies in their saddle, the group was ready to make their way to the Fire Nation island. From talking with Zuko, the group discovered that they were heading to Crescent Island and if they wanted to get there before the solstice ends. One thing they can all see, however, is how terrified Zuko is of going into Fire Nation waters.

“It's the closest I've ever come to going home.” Zuko tells them when they asked him. “And if anyone from the Fire Nation catches me in Fire Nation waters they have permission to do me any harm until they either kill me or chase me over the borders.”

Sokka, Aang and Katara silently agreed that they would stay _far away_ from any Fire Nation ships if they could help it. As Zuko double checks to see if their new luggage is securely tied down and he remembers something.

“Hey, has anyone seen my bow?”

Katara gives Zuko an awkward look before she reaches over to a cloth and reaches under it and pulls out his bow, snapped in half.

“When Hei Bai knocked you onto the ground and hovered over you, they kind of... slammed their hand down on it and... it broke.” she hands him the broken weapon. “I'm sorry.”

Zuko shakes his head. “Don't worry about it, it's just something I picked up from an old weapons store. I'm pretty sure that it had it's glory days a long time ago. Besides, short bows don't really suit me all that well, so maybe I'll get something different one day.” he looks up at her. “Did my quiver and arrows survive at least?”

She nods and pulls out his quiver full of arrows before handing them to him. “It seems that when you were knocked down the string holding it to your hip snapped and it tumbled away so Hei Bai didn't smash it.”

“Why even keep them?” Sokka asks, genuinely curious. “I mean, the bow is useless now, and aren't arrows only good for the type of bow they're made for?”

Zuko nods his head. “That is true, but if you can salvage the arrowheads and feather tips, you can reuse them and put them on new arrows. If I do get a new bow, I can use them to make more arrows and save time having to carve brand new arrowheads.”

“That's awesome!” Sokka says, his eyes wide as he watches Zuko pack the quiver of arrows away.

Silence descends upon the group as they all think about the day ahead of them. What could their ancestors have to tell them that is so important that they have to risk going into enemy waters? The group fall into a four-way hug as they each draw comfort from one another.

“We're in this together.” Katara says quietly.

“We've all got each others back.” Sokka states as Momo lands on Aang's shoulder and Appa gives Sokka a big lick. “Ew!”

After cleaning himself off of slobber, Sokka, Zuko and Katara hop into the saddle while Aang jumps onto Appa's head. The villagers all stand around to watch their departure. The village leader reaches up and hands Aang a small box.

“It's a long journey to Crescent Island. You'll need to fly as fast as possible to have any chance of making it before the sun sets.” the man glances over all of the teens before he gives them a nod. “Good luck, all of you.”

Aang nods his head. “Thank you for all of your-”

“Go!” the elder leader says sharply, pointing towards the ocean.

Shocked from the abrupt interruption, Appa takes off with Aang, Katara, Zuko, Sokka, and Momo. They have a long flight ahead of them, and Sokka has a story to tell, so they all settle in for the long ride.

xXx

Later that morning, the village leader exits the center building, ready to continue life as normal. Only to come to a stop as he finds an elder Fire Nation man standing in his path. He lets out a gasp as he recognizes high royalty in the man's clothing.

“Well, good morning.” Iroh says joyfully. He pushes the leader back through the door, knocking him down to the ground. “I was wondering if you have by any chance seen the Avatar and his companions lately?”

xXx

The sun is shining high in the sky now and the gang is soaring through the cloud filled sky with urgency.

“So wait,” Katara jumps in after her brother finishes his story. “so after Aang saved you from the spirit's grasp, you somehow ended up in the Spirit World in? In which you met a previous waterbending Avatar and their spirit guide named Tikaani and Sesi? Who took you to the island we are now traversing into enemy territory for to speak to our ancestors?”

Sokka shrugs. “Basically. That's the short of it.” he cups his chin in thought. “I'm willing to bet that because it's because I'm the Spirit piece that I transitioned into the Spirit World, without actually going to the Spirit World. I mean, Aang and Zuko just wound up traveling through some weird forest of some sort while I stayed in the real world, only... bluer.”

“How did you guys know you were in the Spirit World?” Katara asks, as she was the only one left behind.

“Well,” Aang begins. “at first I thought I was just brought to another forest. But after I got jumped by a forest dweller, I realized I couldn't bend since I usually jump abnormally high. I remember from my lessons with Gyatso that you can't bend in the Spirit World, and since we _had_ been dealing with a spirit beforehand I figured it wasn't that much of a stretch.”

Zuko shrugs. “I kind of already knew about the whole 'no-bending-in-the-Spirit-World' thing beforehand due to my uncle.” at their confused looks he elaborates. “You see, my uncle has been to the Spirit World before. He's never told me exactly what happened while he was in there, but he has told me some tales about it. Such as no one can bend there, Avatar or not. He also told me about several spirits to avoid if I ever found myself there accidentally. Basically, he told me everything I would need to know, but nothing about why _he_ went there.”

“I realized it when I walked all the way back to the village and tried talking to you, only to find you couldn't hear or see me. Once the sun and risen, I could actually see the blue hue to my entire body and realized that I must be in the Spirit World.” Sokka says with an absence shrug of his shoulders.

Katara looks down, vague anger on her face. “And I wasn't able to help at all. And look where it got me. Left behind and unable to do anything.”

The boys all share a glance before they all crawl over and envelope her in a hug.

“That's why we're doing this.” Zuko murmurs.

“To improve ourselves so we can stop the Fire Nation.” Sokka adds.

“Once you get to waterbending you'll feel much better.” Aang tells her.

They hug for a few more seconds before Sokka sudden asks.

“Hey, Aang. What's in the box the village leader gave you?”

Aang shrugs. “I don't know, but when he gave it to me he looked rather proud, like he had done something unexpected and underhanded and was proud of it.” he reaches for the small box he had set aside and sits down with his friends around him as he opens the box.

Four sets of jaws drop.

“You've got to be kidding me!” Zuko exclaims. “Why would he give us this!?”

Inside the box, was several small precious stones and gems.

“They are pretty though.” Katara mutters, picking one up and examining it.

“Pretty or not, these could sell for quite a bit if you know where and who to sell them to.” Zuko tells them, picking up a deep red gem and holding it up to the sunlight.

“Why don't we put these things away?” Sokka suggests. “Preferably someplace not easily spotted in our luggage?”

“Yeah.” Katara agrees as she and Zuko place the gems back into the box.

Sokka takes the box and carefully hides it amongst their luggage. Aang gets up and takes hold of the reins.

“Come on boy, we've got a long way to go. Faster!”

xXx

On a metal ship out at sea, a certain general is pacing, worried sick over the information he received from the village leader. The Avatar was headed straight towards Fire Nation waters! With Zuko in hand! Oh how he wish he had remember to pulled information about his nephew from the village leader. He was in such a hurry to catch up to them that he forgot about that.

“Sailing into Fire Nation waters... Of all the incredibly foolish things that monk could do, he does the one thing that could quite possibly get my nephew killed!!” he mutters to himself under his breath.

“I'm sure that the Avatar was not thinking of the well being of a prisoner when deciding to head for Crescent Island, sir.” Mitsuko suggests to her general. “Plus, I doubt that they even know that the prince is banished from his home or the consequences of him returning without his objective. He did lie to them, after all.”

“I would hope my nephew would at least be smart enough to tell them about his _banishment_ and why it is dangerous for him to go there! For Agni's sake it's about as dangerous for him as it is for the Avatar to be there!” Iroh wrings his hands together as he tries to hold off his fear. “What if they are caught?”

“We can only hope that they are not spotted by anyone important, and if they are and get reported, hopefully the Fire Lord will understand the circumstances.” Jee says, a twinge of uncertainty in his voice.

“You give the Fire Lord too much credit, lieutenant.” Iroh says, looking at Jee. “My brother is not the _understanding_ type!”

“Sir.” Mitsuko receives a telescope and hands it over to her general. “That way.” she points into the sky.

Iroh gently takes the telescope and looks through it in the direction his soldier had pointed. There in mid-flight was a big fluffy sky bison.

“There you are.” he says softly before shouting to the men in the helm. “Helmsman! Full steam ahead!”

xXx

Katara looks down and sees a very familiar ship. “Guys! We've got trouble!”

Zuko and Sokka look over the edge of the saddle while Aang leans off the edge of Appa's head, holding onto his horn. The three all take on a mixed look of horror and panic.

“And it's gaining fast!” Sokka cries.

On Iroh's ship, a catapult is raised to the deck. It is loaded quickly with a steaming projectile.

“Remember, we are not trying to actually _hit_ them. Force them to keep dodging, it will allow us to keep them in site.” he gives the men aiming the catapult a severe look. “And if any of you actually _do_ hit the bison, you better pray to Agni that those children survive, _including_ my nephew.”

Mitsuko likes the stinking ball with a fire punch.

Iroh lifts a hand. “On my mark!” he waits until he's sure they have a good aim before slashing his hand down. “Fire!”

A guard beside him slices the rope holding back the catapult. The fiery projectile races towards Appa and his riders.

“Fireball!” Sokka cries out.

“Zuko! Do something!” Katara cries.

“I could only do something about the flames!!” Zuko cries. “The rock would still hit us!!”

“I'm on it!” Aang yells as he yanks the reins to one side, pulling Appa out of the fireballs path.

The four teens all plug their noses at the awful smell that pierces their nostrils.

“Ugh! What is that awful smell!?” Sokka exclaims.

“It's lighter fluid!” Zuko cries. “Fire Nation ships cover catapult loads in it so they can light the ammunition on fire! Not a pleasant smell, but would you honestly shoot your enemy with something _fragrant_?!”

“Your uncle is seriously firing _flaming stink balls_ at us!?!” Sokka squeaks.

“I imagine he's a _little_ upset at my 'kidnapping' and just wants to get your capture over with!” Zuko replies.

“We have to get out of General Iroh's range, before he shoots another hot stinker at us!” Katara cries out, looking towards Aang.

“Can Appa go any faster?” Sokka asks.

“Yeah.” Aang says. “But there's just one little problem.”

A soldier runs up towards his general and whispers a piece of information into his ear.

“A blockade.” Iroh says, solemnly.

The four teens on the sky bison look at the two-row of Fire Nation ships stretching across the ocean as far as the eye can see. On the decks of many of the ships, numerous catapults prepare to fire.

“Zhao.” Zuko says, slight anger in his voice. “He's the only one who I imagine could have this kind of military power at the ready. Plus he already wants my head and to present Aang to dear old dad to gain more favor, so it's not that far of a stretch.”

“If we fly north, we can go around the Fire Nation ships and avoid the blockade altogether! It's the only way!” Aang cries back to his friends.

“There's no time!” Katara cries. “We'd never make it before sundown!”

“We have to run it if we want to get to the island in time!” Zuko tells him.

“Let's run this blockade!” Sokka says boldly.

The four teens grin confidently as Aang faces forward and snaps the reins. “Appa, yip-yip!”

Appa roars readily, sailing forward even quicker. Zuko quickly remembers to duck down before they get close enough to be seen clearly. Iroh watches from his ship as the bison flies onward towards the blockade. His lieutenant and best soldier are at his side.

“Sir,” Jee begins uneasily. “we're about to enter Fire Nation waters. What will happen once we are officially out of Earth Kingdom waters?”

“I am not the one who is banished from our homeland.” Iroh tells him. “They have no reason to arrest me. My nephew, on the other hand, is and therefore is the one who is in danger here. I _need_ to get to him and get him out of Fire Nation waters before someone else gets him.” he thrusts his right hand forward and says in a voice filled with command. “Run the blockade!”

xXx

Gazing through a telescope, the commander grins at the sight of the sky bison heading straight for his ships.

“The Avatar and his friends.”

The view is lowered to see a familiar ship.

“And a very determined old man.”

Zhao lowers the telescope and smirks. “This must be my lucky day.”

The captain of the ship approaches Zhao. “Commander Zhao. What are your orders?”

“Shoot the bison down, captain.” Zhao says.

“But there's a Fire Navy ship out there, sir!” the man says, surprised. “One of our own! What if we hit it!?”

“Well, the ship does carry our beloved Fire Lord's brother.” Zhao says coolly. “And he's seen plenty of war, he knows well enough what happens when you stand behind the enemy when your troops at the front are ready to attack.” he turns to the men standing near the catapults. “Ignite!”

The men hesitate for only a second before they light the ammunition.

“Launch!”

The soldiers cut the cords holding the catapults down and the sky becomes littered with flaming fireballs fired from the blockade ships. Aang, Sokka, Katara, and Zuko all scream as Appa evades numerous fireballs, some exploding in mid-air! They quickly fly through a blanket of fireballs before a fireball explodes before them. The Gaang flies through that one, Appa's fur darkened from the explosions. Zuko spares a moment to put out the embers before ducking back out of sight while Sokka and Katara knock the embers off the bison's fur.

“Appa! Are you okay?” Aang asks his furry friend.

Appa roars a reply and takes them higher into the clouds. Meanwhile, on the ocean surface Iroh is having his ship doing evasive maneuvers to avoid the fireballs. When one gets too close, Iroh shoots off a massive fire blast to destroy the flaming projectile, resulting in the ship only getting showered in much smaller rocks. Many of his other soldiers work together to do the same on other parts of the ship where Iroh cannot. Jee and Mitsuko work together to protect the boat's stern, and they manage to destroy a fireball that would have crashed right into the ship's engines.

“Good work!” Iroh calls out to them. “Keep this ship moving!”

Zhao signals his men. “Launch!”

Up above the clouds, fireballs burst through the white fluffiness everywhere and smoke fills the air. The teens scream and duck away, Aang clutching the reins while Zuko, Sokka and Katara grip Appa's saddle. Appa dodges many fireballs before two collide and explode in front of him. Katara is thrown from the saddle and begins to plunge for the ocean below, screaming all the way.

“Katara!” Aang calls out desperately.

Quickly, he whips the reins down and begins a speedy descent in chase of their female companion. Thankfully, they reach her just in time, Sokka grabbing her hand and yanking her into the saddle, Zuko grabbing onto the back of her dress in case she went flying again. Appa skims the ocean surface, fireballs crashing into the water around him.

Up on his ship, Zhao sees his approaching foe and holds his hand up. “Ready...” he commands.

From this range, the siblings can see what is about to happen, and as if sharing the same thoughts, they share a glance and nod. Carefully standing up, the two take on a look of determination.

“Fire!” Zhao shouts.

A single catapult launches a fire blast directly towards Appa. The Water Tribe siblings look on, unafraid as the two of them reach into the water and reach deep inside themselves. Katara thinking back to her self training sessions. Sokka back during his sessions with his sister. Both bend a large, powerful stream of water straight at the flaming boulder. The fiery rock explodes in a large smoky blast, said blast knocking the siblings backwards. Zuko's grasp on their ankles prevent them from falling backwards into the water.

In the aftermath of the sibling's waterbending, Appa soars safely over the blockade, passing the Fire Nation ships with ease. Once they were far enough away, Aang makes sure Appa regains the height advantage and the four teens all let out a huge breath.

“We made it!” Aang cries, ecstatic.

Meanwhile, Zuko is grimacing in terror in between Sokka and Katara. “We got into the Fire Nation.” meekly, he adds. “Great, I was looking forward to adding another 'avoid being killed' incident to today's events.”

Laying down on the saddle, Katara and Sokka share a glance before giggling softly.

“Not bad, Sokka.” Katara compliments her brother.

“Yeah, well.” Sokka shrugs. “You managed it better.”

xXx

Back in the blockade, Zhao watches as the bison flies off.

“Where do you think the Avatar is headed, sir?” Zhao's captain asks.

“I'm not sure.” Zhao turns aside to gaze at Iroh's ship. “But I bet a certain Dragon of the West will know.”

The small ship of Iroh's approaches two ships in the blockade. These two ships are sailing in opposite directions, which means in a moment they will close off Iroh's ship's path.

“Sir! We're on a collision course!” one of the soldiers cry out to his general.

“We will make it.” Iroh replies calmly. “Zhao will not be foolish to try and cut me off.”

Zhao's captain stands ahead of a squad of nine firebenders. “The boarding party is ready to apprehend General Iroh, sir.”

“We have no reason to arrest the man.” Zhao says simply. “Wait!” he throws up one of his hands. “Cut the engines, and let the ship pass.”

“Sir?” the captain asks in confusion.

“You have your orders, captain.” Zhao says without facing the man.

The captain nods and signals to the helmsmen and the other ship to halt. Each ship in the blockade halts in their path, allowing Iroh's ship to glide by beneath their deck, untouched. Zhao stands high, sharing an interlocked gaze with the Dragon of the West below. Iroh does not look behind him in silence as they sail safely through, merely stroking his beard.

xXx

Back on Appa, the bison and his passengers fly among blue skies. Katara, Zuko and Sokka sit up in the saddle, while Aang sits on Appa's head.

A few hours later has Sokka slumped in the back of the saddle, Katara leaning with her arms over the front of the saddle, Zuko is laying against the side of the saddle, and Aang is lounging against Appa's neck.

By the time the sky is a darkened, sunset-filled evening, Appa is visibly tired. Aang is sprawled over Appa's head with Momo doing the same on Aang's head. Zuko, Katara and Sokka have long since collapsed into the saddle.

Suddenly, Momo starts bouncing about in eager surprise. Sokka peeks his head up in curiosity before shooting straight up and crawling to the front of the saddle.

“That's it!” Aang, Katara and Zuko pop up from their respective places. “The island where Tikaani and Sesi took me!”

It was easy to see why the island was called Crescent Island from above. On one end of the island is a smoking volcano, and as Appa descends they get a clearer view of the temple as well. Aang lands Appa near the base of a stone bridge leading up to the island's mountain. The bridge ends at an elegant, multi-story Fire Temple. Lava flows beneath the bridge, classic Fire Nation island. The air is thick with steam from the contrasting lava and cold air from the ocean. The teenagers depart from the bison, stretching a bit. Katara stands next to Appa's side and starts rubbing him.

“You did it buddy.” she says gently. “Nice flying.”

Appa bellows in satisfaction, rolling onto his side to wave his three legs into the air lazily. Appa's tongue lolls out as Katara starts to rub his belly.

“You must be tired after that long flight, aren't you?” she says sweetly.

“No! I'm good.” Sokka replies, thinking she was talking to him. “All refreshed and ready to fight some firebenders!” he continues to stretch his limbs.

Katara turns to him with a hand propped off her hip. “I was talking to Appa.” she tells him dryly.

Sokka instantly freezes in his stretching. “Well, I was talking to Momo.” he says, pointing to the lemur clinging to a dead tree's branch.

“Come on, you guys.” Zuko calls out. “We need to get inside before the day is over! And personally I'd rather not have to run into any fire sages!”

The four teens start walking along the stone bridge to approach the temple. They hide behind a lower wall below some steps. They take a moment to look around.

“I don't see any guards.” Sokka whispers.

“It's a temple, it's a sacred place.” Zuko tells him. “People in the Fire Nation are always taught to respect temples. Plus the sages aren't exactly pushovers in firebending.”

“Are you sure the Fire Nation didn't just abandon it when Avatar Roku died?” Katara asks, looking at Zuko.

He shakes his head. “As a kid it was the fire sages who came to the palace to determine if the children of the royal family were firebenders. I've met some of them before, not a big fan.”

“It's almost sundown. We better hurry!” Aang says, looking over at the setting sun.

The group of four leaps over the wall and charges for the front door. Once through, they tip-toe through an enormous chamber with five-decor columns. They keep looking around, but no one is around.

“Okay, we're inside.” Katara says, her voice still a whisper. “Where do we go from here?”

“Well, when I came here in the Spirit World we went straight through the ceiling.” Sokka says, pointing directly up. “So our best bet would be to find some stairs.”

“Hey, Zuko.” Aang turns to the banished prince. “Do you know where to go from here?”

Zuko shakes his head. “Not really. I've never been here, and I only have a vague idea from how other fire temples I've visited are built.”

“Well, we won't get anywhere by standing around.” Sokka whispers. “Let's just pick hallway and get moving.”

They quickly pick a hallway and start running, taking care to peek first around any corners before proceeding. They had a few close calls with nearly running into fire sages, but thankfully luck must have been on their side for the sage was always going in the opposite direction. Always making sure they were as silent as possible, they tried to find stairs, but so far they were having any luck. They either found stairs going down, or dead ends. They were ready to groan in frustration when they came upon _another_ dead end.

“At this rate we'll never make it before sundown!” Sokka whispers harshly.

“I wish I was more helpful.” Zuko grumbles, slamming his fist into the ground.

“It's not your fault, Zuko.” Aang reassures him, putting a hand on his shoulder.

“You can't know everything about the Fire Nation. Ex-prince or not.” Katara adds.

Zuko stays silent, but nods in agreement.

Suddenly, a chunk of the wall falls away and slides to the side to reveal a secret passageway. The four teens freeze as they watch an elderly man walk out of the doorway. His face is turned away from them, but they have nowhere to hide, so they know they're busted. Before he can close the door, his eyes glance to them and he jumps, startled, as he stares at them.

Before the sage can even move, Zuko jumps up from his kneeling position and takes a firebending stance. His fists aiming straight for the sage, not willing to let him hurt his friends, especially since Katara and Sokka don't have enough water to fight with and Aang's airbending would only fan the flames. Which is _not_ what they needed in such an enclosed place.

“Make one wrong move and I'll burn you into charcoal.” Zuko threatens.

The fire sage is shocked by Zuko's voice, and looks closely at his face. “Prince Zuko?” he asks carefully.

Zuko quickly lights a flame. “I haven't been a prince for the past three years and the entire Fire Nation knows this. Try again.”

“Prince Zuko.” the sage continues, ignoring Zuko's warning to not call him prince. “I don't want to fight. Don't you remember me? My name is Shyu.”

“I don't care. All I remember is that you're a fire sage and that you people are loyal first and foremost to the Fire Lord.” Zuko replies quickly. “And don't call me prince!”

“Prince Zuko, I was the one your father brought to the palace to see if you were a firebender.” the sage says.

“Again, I don't care.” Zuko says. “And again, you are loyal to the Fire Lord. And once again, don't call me prince!!!”

“I am not loyal to anyone but the Avatar.” the sage says, his gaze traveling to Aang behind Zuko. “Who I can see you have brought with you.” the man gives a bow. “It is an honor to know the Avatar is amongst the world once more.”

Sokka pulls out his boomerang. “Back off, buddy.”

The man holds up his hands. “Please, I don't want to fight any of you. I am a friend.”

“Firebenders aren't our friends!” Sokka cries.

“Hey!” Zuko cries out, feeling offended.

“Except for you, Zuko.” Sokka quickly amends. “You are probably the only sane firebender we have met thus far.” he turns back towards Shyu. “Anyways, what are we going to do now? The solstice is almost here!”

The sage steps back away from Zuko's flaming fists before dropping to his knees and pressing his palms to the floor is submission. This confuses Aang, Sokka and Katara while it severely startles Zuko, who actually comes out of his firebending stance.

“I know why you have come here on this day, Avatar.”

“You do?” Katara asks, surprised.

“Yes.” Shyu rises from the floor to stand again. “It is the winter solstice, one of the few days of the year where the line between our world and the Spirit World are at it's weakest. If there way any day to risk coming into Fire Nation territory it would be today.” he stares at Aang. “You wish to speak with Avatar Roku. I can take you to him.”

“How?” Sokka asks, skeptic.

Shyu calmly gestures to the passageway he had come out of. “This way.”

The teens share a look.

“Quickly! Time is running short.”

They all glance at Zuko, who stares at Shyu before he gives a slight nod to his companions. The group enters the passage and descends the steps into the cave. Shyu enters behind them and closes the doorway. The steps lead downward into caverns which seem to be the inside of the volcano. Shyu makes his way to the front of the line as he carefully leads them through the caverns.

“Avatar Roku once called this temple home. He formed these secret passages out of the magma from the volcano.” he informs the teens.

“Did you know my great-grandfather?” Zuko asks.

Shyu looks at Zuko in surprise, shocked that he seems to know such a bit of information. “How do know about your relation to Avatar Roku?” he asks.

“I found out from a reliable source.” Zuko tells him. “I won't tell you, but let's say I trust the person who told me. I know that my mother was sought after because she was the granddaughter of Avatar Roku, and my grandfather, Fire Lord Azulon wanted to conjoin the lines of old friends. Because everyone who knows the proper history knows that Fire Lord Sozin and Avatar Roku were friends growing up.”

Shyu digests that information before he continues on the path. “I can't say that I knew Avatar Roku, but my grandfather did. Many generations of Fire Sages guarded this Fire Temple long before myself. We all have a strong spiritual connection to this place.”

“Wait, if you all have a spiritual connection,” Aang jumps into the conversation. “then why weren't any of you waiting around for me to show up?”

“The other sages rely too much on the words of others rather than listening to the spiritual signs anymore. If they don't hear word from a messenger hawk that the Avatar hasn't returned, then by their beliefs, you haven't.”

“Zuko,” Katara looks over to the tall boy. “you mentioned earlier that the fire sages were loyal to the Fire Lord. What did you mean?”

“Ask him.” Zuko says, gesturing to Shyu.

“Since the time of Avatar Roku, things have changed.” Shyu began. “In the past, the sages were loyal only to the Avatar. When Roku died, the sages did as was custom and awaited for the next Avatar to return. But he never came.”

Aang looks down guiltily. “They were waiting for me.”

 **And now they've got us to deal with.** The teens could help but think, small smiles on their faces.

“Over the years, the sages lost hope that the Avatar would return at all.” Shyu continues. “When Fire Lord Sozin began the War, my grandfather and the other sages were forced to follow him.” the man shakes his head sadly. “I never wanted to serve the Fire Lord. When I realized that the solstice was coming, I knew that if there was any day I might hear a whisper of you it would be this day or any days following after. I also knew that I would have to betray the other sages.”

“Thank you for helping us.” Aang thanks him.

The group continues up a spiraling flight of stairs.

“These stairs will take us to the sanctuary. Once you're inside, wait for the light to hit Avatar Roku's statue. Only then will you be able to speak with him.”

Shyu slides a tile back and climbs into the outer sanctuary. Massive columns with dragons statues atop them line the room. Two open doors are open before them, each door containing a device holding five open-mouthed dragons.

“What's with the fancy door designs?” Sokka asks.

“It's a locking mechanism we use to keep intruders out. It can only be opened by five simultaneous fire blasts, or by a fully realized Avatar.”

“Well, I'm glad they're open. Because we would have a serious problem if they were closed.” Sokka says, eyeing the locking mechanisms.

 **Because even if Aang, Katara and I are Avatars, and therefore technically firebenders, there's no way we would be able to open that door.** Sokka thinks, thankful once more that the doors were wide open.

“It would be best if we closed the doors behind you, young Avatar.” Shyu says, looking at Aang.

Aang looks at Shyu, a determined look in his eyes. “My friends are coming in with me. What if one of the other sages come up here while I'm in there? I don't want my friends being easy bait.”

Shyu looks very confused. “You are the Avatar, what Roku has to say should be said only to the Avatar.”

 **Then it's fitting for all of us to be in there.** The four teens think dryly.

“I'm just an inexperienced kid who has no idea how I'm supposed to defeat the enemy.” Aang says, not backing down from Shyu. “Avatar or not, I'm still a kid and I can't win this war by myself. My friends come with me.”

Shyu and Aang continue to stare at each other, waiting for the other to yield, but Aang proves to be more stubborn and Shyu yields. As the teens enter the room, they hear the scraping of the doors as Shyu slowly closes the doors behind them. Unknowing to them, but from the outside the doors seal shut with a blinding flash of white light.

Once the doors have close, and they hear the clicking of a lock, they examine the room they are in. The main piece of the room is quite obviously the tall golden statue of Avatar Roku. A red beam of light is right next to the face of the statue. The walls are of strips of gold and red, not surprising since, you know, Fire Nation. The teens wait for a few moments before their faces become confused.

“Um, isn't something supposed to happen?” Aang asks.

“It's a solstice calendar.” Zuko points out.

“Yeah, that much is obvious.” Sokka says. “Even I knew that when I was brought here.”

“That's not what I meant.” Zuko gives a small glare to Sokka. “This room was created so the sunlight will only hit the statue right on the peak of the summer and winter solstices. Which means that until the sun is in a certain position will the red beam hit the statue.” he points towards the statue's face. “The red beam isn't quite on the statue yet, so we'll have to wait.”

“For how long?” Katara asks, frustration in her voice.

“Not long,” Zuko tells them. “a few minutes at most. It is pretty close to sundown as it is.”

“Great.” Sokka collapses onto the cool stone floor. “I'm just going to lay here and take comfort in the relaxing smooth stone.”

The other three let out small laughs as they sit down as well.

“What do you think is so important that we needed to come into dangerous territory to speak to our ancestors?” Aang asks.

“Well,” Sokka begins. “all I know is that it involves a comet of some sort.”

“A comet?” Zuko asks, his brows furrowing in thought. “Why does that sound so familiar?”

“I don't know.” Sokka shrugs.

“Is the light on the statue yet?” Aang asks.

Katara looks up at the statue and sighs. “No, not yet.”

The four teens groan as they all lay on their backs like Sokka, waiting for the moment of the solstice to activate so they can speak with their ancestors.

xXx

Shyu stands outside the doors, thinking of the odd behavior of the teens he had just locked in the chamber. The Avatar was suppose to take on their duty alone, as they are one, and no other could possibly understand the pressure that the responsibilities of being the Avatar would bring. But this one, Avatar Aang, would not stand down and take on the burden himself. Rather, he would have his friends stand by his side, including the son of the man he must defeat! This war would certainly be interesting, Shyu knew that much.

“Shyu?”

The sage turns around swiftly to see the other sages standing near the secret entrance, with Fire Nation soldiers behind them. And standing next to the head sage was-

First Prince, Dragon of the West, General Iroh.

“What are you doing here?” the head sage asks. “We looked for you at your post, and you were not there.”

“I had an uneasy feeling, so I came to the room of Avatar Roku to find the doors locked.” Shyu tells the head sage, the lie coming easily. It was not the first time he's had to lie to the man. “What honor do we have for the Fire Lord's brother to visit our temple?”

“General Iroh says that he's in pursuit of the Avatar and his companions, along with their captive, Prince Zuko.” the man says.

Shyu freezes. Captive? The prince? _No_. Shyu _saw_ how the prince had taken a defensive stance in front of the other three teens. There is no way that boy was a captive. And, no offense to Avatar Aang, but he, the Water Tribe boy, and the girl were pretty skinny. Little or no muscle at all. Meanwhile the prince is _all muscle_. There is no way those three would have been able to take the prince captive. By surprise? Quite possible, and believable. But afterwords, once the shock had worn off? No, the prince was much more experienced than the other three, and while they probably would have put up a good fight there is no way they would have been able to keep Prince Zuko a prisoner.

But Shyu feels like there's a reason why the teens haven't tried to prove that the prince was _not_ a captive and, instead, a friend. He has no intention of ruining that illusion if it gives the children an advantage.

“You should not have left your post!” the head sage lectures Shyu. “Silly spirit messages are no reason to leave part of our temple unguarded!”

“Do not lecture him.” General Iroh tells the head sage. “Fire Sages would do well to listen when the spirits give them messages. That is the whole point of your titles, is it not?”

The head sage freezes in his spot before cowering slightly. The old prince then turns to Shyu

He gives the Fire Nation bow to the general. “It is a huge honor to have you here in our temple. What is it you seek here?”

“I'm chasing the Avatar. As the head sage has informed you.” Iroh tells him. “I would very much like to get my nephew back and out of these waters before he gets caught. Captive or not, it will not be tolerated for him to be in Fire Nation waters.”

Shyu nods. “I understand.” figuring that he should stay in character as a loyal sage, he adds. “If the Avatar truly is in the temple, then he and his companions might very well be inside the chamber.”

“Open it.” Iroh commands.

Only slightly worried, but managing to keep it off his face, Shyu stands with the other sages and they launch five fire blast into the door's locks. To the shock of the other sages, the doors do not open. The head sages gives the order to fire again, and they do.

The doors still do not open.

“Why aren't they opening?” one of General Iroh's soldiers ask.

“I imagine the spirit of Avatar Roku recognizes that his current life is inside and refuses to let them open. He does not want us inside.”

xXx

As time passes, the teens begin to grow restless with the anxiety of waiting for whatever they were here for to happen. Katara looks up to see the red beam of light _finally_ on the statue of Avatar Roku.

“Guys! The light's on the statue!” she cries out.

Fast as a flash, the four of them are on their feet, staring at the face of the statue.

Suddenly, Roku's statue turns red as sunlight engulfs it. It's eyes glow white and the brightness causes the four of them to cover their eyes. They wrinkle their noses as smoke fills the room. Once it dissipates they are on a mountaintop and only clouds are visible below.

Although they were kind of expecting it, they all jump as four figures appear before them in twirls of smoke. Once the smoke is gone, Kuruk, Roku, Yangchen, and Kyoshi stand before them. They also notice a fifth figure standing to the side of Kuruk. She wore Water Tribe clothing and wore her hair in a similar style to what the women of the Southern Pole wore theirs in. She nods to them as they spot her, but she does not say anything.

“It's good to see you all again.” Roku says, a small smile on his face.

“What took you brats so long?” Kyoshi asks, crossing her arms.

The teens quickly bow to their ancestor before giving a respectful bow to Kyoshi and the second Water Tribe waterbender.

“Now, I believe we have some business to get to.” Yangchen says.

xXx

“Is there no other way inside the chamber?” Iroh demands.

“No, unless you had the power to bash down those doors.” the head sage informs Iroh. “Only an Avatar could knock those doors off their hinges.”

“I need to get my nephew and you are not helping!” Iroh says angrily.

“Why would anyone help that pathetic traitor?”

Iroh turns around to see Zhao, who has six firebender guards with him.

“Zhao. I can't say it's a pleasure to see you.” Iroh tells him stiffly as the other sages bow to the commander.

“Well, General Iroh. I couldn't help but overhear the fact that our banished prince is in Fire Nation waters. You know what that means, don't you?” Zhao mockingly asks the older man.

“I won't let you, Zhao.” Iroh tells him harshly, to which Zhao takes a step back.

“You won't be _letting me_ do anything.” Zhao tells him. “Not even you can save your precious nephew now that I will catch him where he's not suppose to be. And once I do, I'll bring him to our beloved Fire Lord.”

“You won't be catching him anytime soon.” Iroh tells him. “The doors are sealed shut.”

“No matter.” Zhao says, not at all bothered. “Sooner or later, they need to come out.”

xXx

“We have something very important to tell you.” Kuruk tells the teens. “That is why, when you were in the Spirit World, Sokka, I sent Tikaani and Sesi to find you.”

“Wait, you sent those two?” Sokka asks, surprised. “Why them?”

“It's a side effect of the fractured state of the Avatar Soul.” Kyoshi explains. “The four of you can only get in contact with previous Avatars that hailed from your nation. It's the same with going into the Avatar State. While normally an Avatar would feel all their past lives, each of you can only feel the past lives of those that came from your own nation. Which means that none of you will be getting visits from any earthbending Avatars, as they're all with the Earth piece. So if we want to contact you, it can only be through Avatars from your element.”

“Just how badly is the Avatar Soul damaged?” Katara asks, her eyebrows creasing at the odd side effect of their split state of being.

“Badly, and enough so that it won't be mending in any of your lifetimes.” Yangchen tells them.

“So why did you call us here?” Aang asks. “Sokka says that Tikaani showed him a vision of a comet.”

“It is about the comet, yes.” Roku nods.

“What does it mean?” Sokka asks.

“One hundred years ago,” Roku begins. “Fire Lord Sozin used that comet to begin the war, and dealt the first deadly strike that will forever mar our history.”

“The Air Nomad genocide.” Zuko whispers.

Roku nods. “Yes.”

“But that was a hundred years ago.” Katara bursts out. “What does the comet have to do with the War today?”

Suddenly Zuko's eyes widen and his hands shoot up to grab at his hair. “ _Shit!!_ Sozin's _Comet!!!_ That's why it seemed familiar!”

Roku grimaces and nods. “Yes. Listen carefully you four. Sozin's Comet will return by the end of the summer, and Fire Lord Ozai will use its power to finish the War, once and for all.”

“If he succeeds, not even you pieces of the Avatar Soul will be able to restore balance to the world.” Kuruk informs them grimly. “You _need_ to defeat the Fire Lord, before the comet arrives.”

Roku turns towards his descendant.

“Zuko, there is something else I must tell you. You need to see the Sun Warriors.”

“The Sun Warriors?” Zuko repeats. “But they died out centuries ago. The only thing left is the ruins from where they lived.”

“You'll find more then ruins there, my descendant.” Roku tells him.

“Care to explain why you're having us fly further into enemy territory?” Sokka asks sarcastically.

“Aang has his animal guide, you all will need yours as well.” Yangchen says, a small smile on her face.

The teen's eyes widen.

“Wait, animal guides!?” Sokka exclaims. “Like Sesi and Appa?”

The dead Avatars nod their heads. Katara notices an odd bit of wording.

“Wait, why do we 'need' them?” she inquires.

“Animal guides help their Avatar in bringing peace to the world,” Yangchen tells them. “but what is not known to many is that animal guides are also a barrier between the Avatar and the real world.”

“What do you mean 'barrier'?” Aang asks.

“The intensity of the power of so many Avatars inside one body get to be too much for the mental health for a human being.” Kyoshi begins. “Animal guides weren't with the Avatars of the beginning, because they weren't necessary. But as more Avatars joined the dead in the Avatar State, the more powerful the soul got. During one incarnation the Avatar at the time, a little girl, had too much pressure on her from her parents. Her entire family went along with the pressure, and because she had to work so hard to meet their expectations, she had no friends.” she grips her arms tightly. “One day, all the pressure she was feeling became too great, and the Avatar State went out of control. She was a little girl who had no one to turn to or confide in, no one who would stand next to her throughout everything. She felt alone.”

The Gaang look at Kyoshi in utter shock and horror.

“The Avatar State went on for days, until she just collapsed due to dehydration, starvation, and exhaustion. The people did what they could, but everything was too much and the only they could confirm was that she was on her deathbed. While everyone around her chattered trying to figure out why she reacted the way she did, a small cat went up to her and laid next to her as she died. Somehow, that cat's spirit followed the girl's into the afterlife and created the idea for an animal guide. All the Avatars within the Avatar State used the connection between the girl and the cat to create a new incarnation cycle. They created the animal guide cycle. Every time an Avatar is born, an animal is birthed in later years to find their Avatar and bond with them. The emotion bond and support they get from the animal guide creates a barrier. It's why no sane person would ever separate an Avatar from their animal guide. A fully realized Avatar is powerful, but an insane one is unstoppable.”

“So why does Zuko need to find his? What about mine and Sokka's?” Katara asks.

“The older an Avatar gets without bonding with their animal guide the weaker the barrier holding all that power in gets. At most, Zuko has about one more year until the pressure gets to be two much and it all releases.”

Zuko freezes at the declaration and a terrified look crosses his face.

“Which is why you must go to the ruins of the Sun Warriors. You'll find your animal guide there.” Roku tells his great-grandson.

xXx

Firebenders, including Zhao and his crew, circle around the door's perimeters, assuming a firebending form. Iroh stands off to the side, burning with anger inside at his incapability of being of help to his nephew.

“When those doors open,” Zhao tells the men. “unleash all your firepower!”

xXx

“The solstice is almost over.” Kuruk says. “We must go our separate ways, for now. But I can sense a great danger awaiting you back in the temple.”

“We can help you face the threat, but only if you are willing.” Yangchen says.

The teens nod. With that, Roku stands in front of Zuko, Yangchen in front of Aang, Kuruk in front of Sokka, and the mystery woman standing in front of Katara.

“Who are you?” Katara asks.

The woman does not speak, but instead moves her hands in odd gestures.

“Her name is Ulva, she was the Water Tribe Avatar before me.” Kuruk tells them. “She is mute, and can only 'speak' with her hands.”

Ulva nods and makes a few more gestures with a smile on her face.

“She is here to help you specifically, Katara.” Kuruk says, looking at his female descendant. “She intends to help you, as she feels a kinship since she hailed from the south, like yourself.”

Katara looks at Ulva in shock as the woman smiles kindly at her.

“Are you ready?” Yangchen asks all four teens.

Aang's tattoos and eyes glow, along with the eyes of Zuko, Katara, and Sokka.

“ **We're ready.”**

xXx

The door glows a bright white. Smoke streams come through into the room. The door unlocks itself, the mechanisms heard clearly as they click and grind. It begins to open, as it does so a blinding white light forces all present to look away.

“Ready..” Zhao calls out, not willing to back down.

The light fades, revealing four pairs of glowing white eyes in the darkness.

“Fire!” Zhao cries.

He and his guards cooperate in blasting fire onto the unseen targets. The wall of fire amasses, circling its new hosts as Avatar Roku, Avatar Yangchen, Avatar Kuruk, and a female waterbending Avatar are revealed behind the flames, completely untouched, their eyes aglow. Zhao's face morphs into a mix of shock and horror.

Shyu looks on in awe. “Avatar Roku...”

Roku draws the circling fire together in one motion. He sends it forward into one powerful wave that sears the room, blasting the offenders off their feet. Yangchen turns her glowing glare upon the offending sages, who panic and run away from her wraith. She hits them with a powerful blast of air, sending them flying.

Shyu runs over to Iroh and two of his men. “They mean to destroy the temple. We _have_ to get out of here!”

Iroh turns his fierce glare upon the sage. “I will _**not** _ leave without my nephew!”

“You won't be alive to see your nephew if you stay here to get incinerated!” Shyu cries.

The two soldiers to Iroh's sides share a glance, and Shyu can see one of them is a woman. They seem to agree as they nod, and they both grasp the general's arms and start dragging him away.

“Let me go!” Iroh cries. “I will not leave Zuko behind!”

Lieutenant Jee and Mitsuko ignore Iroh's cries as they drag him away from danger. Kuruk kneels into a forward strike, melting the floor with a molten firebending trail. He steadily lifts his hand, causing the stream of lava below to erupt into maddened explosions. The lava soars through the temple, tearing it apart. Zhao and his firebenders had fled from the temple long ago. Ulva slams her hand to the ground, causing all the lava in the temple to increase their flow double time.

The destruction ceases momentarily as Roku, Kuruk, Yangchen, and Ulva lowers their hands, exhaling soundly. The solstice' beam of sunlight moves off the statue, its eyes no longer glowing. As this happens, all the smoke in the room draws in upon the four dead Avatars, their forms disappearing to reveal four weary teens. Zuko grasps onto Sokka on his right and Aang on his left. Katara grasps onto Sokka's right for support.

“Come on, we need to get out of here...” Zuko says, his voice soft with exhaustion.

“Where's Shyu?” Aang asks, weakly.

“He probably left with everyone else.” Sokka replies.

With each of the leaning on one another for support as they walk towards the stairwell, only to stare in horror upon seeing it filled with lava. It is about here that they also realize that the temple is beginning to lean and soon it will tip over. Quickly, they turn to the only exit left; the hole in the whole courtesy of Roku. Dismay fills their hearts as they see no way down without serious injury.

The four gasp in surprise as they look up and spot Appa and Momo swiftly closing in. With a burst of adrenaline running through their veins, they run out of the temple, leaping into Appa's saddle. As they fly away, they all gaze back at the destruction of the temple. On the island shore, they can see two ships, along with small dots which were obviously people. Sokka then turns to face the others with a serious look on his tired face.

“Okay, which way is the Sun Warriors ruins thing?”

Zuko digs a map out of their bags and lays it out on the saddle floor. They all huddle around it as Zuko points to a small island.

“Right here. That's where we need to go.”

Aang sighs. “Looks like we have a long trip ahead of us.” he crawls over and grabs the reins to turn Appa in the correct direction. “Come on boy, yip-yip.”

xXx

From the island shoreline, Iroh watches the bison as it flies away, cursing himself for losing his nephew once more, as well as his lieutenant and soldier for dragging him away. Although, he has to concede the fact that if they had not, he would have surely died waiting to get Zuko.

“Well, I hope you're happy.” Iroh turns around to see Zhao, who is looking far too pleased for someone who just lost the Avatar and his chance to punish the prince he so desperately hates.

“We'll be on our way, Zhao.” Iroh begins walking towards his ship, when he is stopped by Zhao.

“You won't be going anywhere, General Iroh.” Zhao smirks. “You see, I got a missive from the Fire Lord after I informed him of his son's capture at the hands of the Avatar. He gave me permission to detain you if you proved to be incapable of doing this simple task of retrieving your nephew. He feels that you haven't been thinking objectively since Prince Zuko got captured. From now on, you will be on my ship, in the prison hold.”

Iroh could only grit his teeth as he and his men were escorted onto Zhao's ship.

**This won't stop me, Ozai. Until I know that Zuko will be safe from you, I will never stop.**

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Whoooo! This chapter was fun! It had only occurred to me in this chapter that by not going inside the air temple, they don't activate the statues, so the statues all over the world don't react. And if they don't react, the fire sages are unaware of the avatar's return so would not be on alert come the solstice. As for the whole 'each-gets-possessed-by-a-dead-avatar' thing, it was mainly to avoid Zuko getting seen by Iroh. Yeah, we're still going with that.
> 
> Also, Zuko curses! He's a teenage boy who was at sea (with a few trips on land here and there) for three years surrounded by adult men who already had years of experience. You really think Zuko didn't pick up a few words after three years? Hell yeah, he did! He just doesn't prefer to use them, usually only doing so if he's frustrated, angry, or if he gets seriously hurt. Normally, he's pretty good holding the curses in, but he'll be doing it a lot more in the future. Who knows? He might even corrupt his friends along the way!
> 
> Also! We've reached over 1000 Hits on ao3!!
> 
> Lex: aha, and I see my Author note placeholder is here already. So far every time Rain has had to add it in for me cause I forgot. Lol. Anyway! Before y'all start yelling in the comments or something, the mute avatar from the South will definitely come up again later. Among other avatars whom have some type of disability. Because if a certain earthbender can be badass with her element, can't the same be said if an Avatar has the same thing?  
> Also, we didn't describe the actual sign movements as uh, neither of us know any(as far as I know with Rain, haha) and so we don't really know how to write the specific movements for the sign. Also, have fun this was posted for us at like, 12:37AM. Ha.
> 
> Uploaded (Ao3): 3/21/2019  
> Uploaded (Fanfiction.net): 3/21/2019


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